GTA developer denies firing staff over union activity
A senior executive at Rockstar Games, the developer behind the Grand Theft Auto video game, denied monitoring employees' union membership as an employment tribunal examined the dismissal of 34 workers, Anadolu Agency reports.
Robert Spampinato, the company's vice president of human resources, told the tribunal in Glasgow, Scotland, that allegations he had instructed managers to "keep tabs" on union membership were "categorically not true."
Twenty-three former employees, most previously based at Rockstar North in Edinburgh, are challenging their October 2025 dismissals with support from the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain (IWGB).
The union alleges the workers were targeted for trade union activities, while Rockstar maintains they were dismissed for sharing confidential company information on a Discord server.
The tribunal heard that an anonymous employee had passed information about union meetings and recruitment activities to Human Resources managers.
Spampinato acknowledged that the information helped management follow workplace grievances but denied any attempt to suppress union activity.
Asked why the dismissals occurred in October 2025 despite some information being available earlier, he said Rockstar was in "crisis mode" because of delays to Grand Theft Auto 6.
"We were in a moment when we knew we were running late on the development," he said.
The game is scheduled for release on Nov. 19 after two delays.
The tribunal proceedings are continuing.
Earlier, Qazinform News Agency reported that Rockstar Games’ upcoming PS5 lineup includes the highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI, scheduled for release on November 19, 2026, while updated versions of Red Dead Redemption 2 and Grand Theft Auto IV were reportedly in development.