Rockstar Games workers claim they were ‘put on watch list’ for signing petition

Former staff at Rockstar North, developer of Grand Theft Auto, have told an employment tribunal that the company kept a "watch list" of employees who signed a petition about returning to office working, which they allege was later used to justify their dismissal for trade union activities. The case, brought by 23 of the 34 workers reportedly sacked in October last year, is significant given Rockstar's imminent launch of the hugely anticipated Grand Theft Auto VI, and raises questions about how companies monitor and respond to organised workplace dissent.

The tribunal heard around 150 Rockstar employees signed a 2023 petition on office attendance, of whom only 15-20 were union members, though there was nothing on the document identifying them as such. Lawyers for Rockstar, represented by Thomas Cordrey, challenged claimant Dayne Oram over the gap of nearly three years between the petition and the dismissals, and noted that 141 of the 154 signatories were not sacked. Rockstar maintains the dismissals were for gross misconduct after employees discussed confidential company information on a Discord server used by around 300 staff, while the claimants, represented by the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain, allege unlawful blacklisting and targeting for union activity. Rockstar has said it will vigorously contest the claims.