In the wake of fierce criticism over the layoffs, the RGWU is growing rapidly. Rockstar now faces the prospect of the union being legally recognized.
The Rockstar Game Workers Union (RGWU) was formed earlier this year as a direct response to the highly controversial waves of layoffs at the developer of Grand Theft Auto 6. According to its own statements, the union now has “more members than ever before.”
A new video from People Make Games shows: The RGWU is currently calling on Rockstar to voluntarily recognize it as a union. If the studio refuses, it faces the prospect of legal recognition. Such a move could force Rockstar to cooperate. It is precisely this recent surge in RGWU membership that is making this path possible in the first place.
Once the Rockstar union is officially recognized, it would be only the second British video game union ever—and by far the largest. Currently, ZA/UM still holds that record.Its employees joined forces last October.
Alex Marshall also spoke out in an interview with People Make Games. He is president of the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB), the umbrella organization for the RGWU. He confirmed that the IWGB and Rockstar Games are already preparing for negotiations. An initial meeting is apparently imminent. Marshall made it clear: Should Rockstar Games be uncooperative during the talks, the IWGB would be “more than happy to resort to other mechanisms to secure recognition.”
Marshall also provided fascinating insights into the RGWU’s rapidly growing membership. Shortly after Rockstar fired around 30 developers last year, a climate of intimidation reportedly prevailed at the studio. Consequently, the union’s launch proved difficult. Since then, the group has had to do some real “rebuilding.” At the same time, however, there was a palpable urge among the workforce to organize.
Following last year’s wave of layoffs, accusations rained down on Rockstar: the studio was allegedly engaging in active union-busting—that is, deliberately undermining union structures. The company consistently denied these allegations. Management argued that the affected employees had been fired for gross misconduct. At the time, senior management claimed not to have known whether these individuals were union members or not.
The conflict has since become a constant topic of discussion in the British gaming industry. In the months following the layoffs, there were repeated protests outside the offices of Rockstar’s parent company, Take-Two. The debate ultimately even reached the British Parliament. Even former Prime Minister Keir Starmer weighed in at the time, describing the layoffs at Rockstar as “deeply concerning.”
