Fired Rockstar workers who are engaged in a legal dispute with the company have publicly asked fans not to boycott Grand Theft Auto VI. Instead, they are encouraging supporters to purchase T-shirts, with proceeds going towards their legal costs and advocating for their cause.
The Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) stated that the final hearing of the workers' proceedings against Rockstar is scheduled to commence next month. The union has launched a T-shirt campaign to help fund the ongoing legal battle.
Rockstar Games has maintained that the employees dismissed late last year were let go due to leaking unannounced game features on Discord, rather than for attempting to unionize. A total of 34 staff members, 31 in the UK and three in Canada, were terminated. This action led to protests outside Rockstar North in Edinburgh and Take-Two's offices in London.
According to Rockstar, the leaked information was significant and pertained to game features, development progress, launch timelines, and IT security protocols for GTA 6. The company believes such leaks could have had a substantial impact on gaming news coverage and potentially affected Take-Two's stock price. For instance, when Rockstar officially announced a six-month delay for GTA 6, Take-Two's market value reportedly dropped by $3.75 billion in one day.
Rockstar also highlighted its consistent zero-tolerance policy for leaks, citing previous dismissals for similar offenses, including an employee in the UK in April 2025, and two employees in the U.S. and India in November 2023 and November 2025, respectively, for disclosing confidential information about GTA 6.
Jack Hoxby, a member of the IWGB Game Workers Branch who was dismissed by Rockstar, expressed gratitude for the support received from gamers and workers globally. "We don't want you to boycott it. We want you to help us fight for justice," Hoxby stated in a filmed message. "Buy one of our T-shirts. You’ll be helping to win justice for us and to defend the right of workers everywhere to come together and unionise."
While a boycott would likely have minimal impact on GTA 6's projected sales, with Take-Two chief already describing preorders as "unprecedented," the IWGB aims to maintain public awareness as the final hearing approaches. The union has also applied for voluntary recognition of the IWGB Game Workers Union by Rockstar developers, which would make it the second UK games studio with a formally recognized union, following Disco Elysium developer ZA/UM.
Formal recognition would offer union members enhanced protections and rights, including collective bargaining on issues such as pay transparency, flexible working, and overtime. The IWGB claims to represent a substantial portion of Rockstar's workforce and attributes previous pay increases and crunch incentives to its presence.
A spokesperson for Rockstar Games commented on the union's request for recognition, stating, "We have received a request from a union seeking to discuss voluntary recognition. We value an open and constructive dialogue with all stakeholders and will arrange to meet." The company also emphasized its commitment to providing world-class work environments and career opportunities, fostering a culture of teamwork, excellence, and kindness, and supporting employees through competitive compensation and benefits, which they believe results in employee retention above the industry standard.