Rockstar Union Vote Set for GTA 6 Launch Week

Rockstar Games employees in the UK will vote on whether to formally recognise the IWGB Rockstar Game Workers Union from November 12 to November 26. The window brackets the November 19 release of Grand Theft Auto VI, so the biggest launch in gaming and a possible landmark for workers’ rights will happen in the same fortnight.

What the vote decides

The ballot asks staff to approve a recognition deal negotiated between the union and Rockstar management. The talks reportedly began in July. If the vote passes, the union gets a formal say over pay and bonuses, overtime, redundancies, flexible working and generative AI policies. The vote will be held online and anonymously.

Why it could be historic

The IWGB Game Workers Union says it represents more than 2,000 members across over 80 UK and European studios. Rockstar employs over 4,700 people, so a successful vote could make this the biggest recognised union in the UK games industry.

Some outlets go further and suggest it could become the largest games union anywhere, though that depends on how many staff the union ends up covering. For comparison, the largest recognised unions in the US cover far fewer people: Activision’s QA United-CWA represents around 600 QA workers, and ZeniMax Workers United around 300.

The Shadow of the 31 firings

Rockstar Union Vote Set for GTA 6 Launch Week

The vote comes alongside a bitter dispute. In October 2025, Rockstar fired 31 workers, saying they had leaked confidential GTA 6 information in a public Discord server.

The IWGB says the dismissals were unlawful and amounted to union busting. The case is now before an employment tribunal in Scotland, with closing submissions scheduled for November 17-18, right before the vote opens to its final stretch and the game launches.

Rockstar has not publicly commented on the vote. Head of publishing Jennifer Kolbe told Bloomberg that “We go where the team goes”, adding that if staff want a union, they will have one.

What the union is saying

Union committee member Shanti Easton-Steel, a production coordinator at Rockstar North, framed the moment as a chance to “make gaming history not once but twice.”

She said the vote is about transparency in management decisions, and pointed to the gender pay gap, inconsistent overtime pay policies and job security concerns after release. IWGB president Alex Marshall called the vote just as historic as the game itself, calling it a choice about having a say in how workers’ daily lives are organised, from pay and pensions to parental leave and overtime.

A wider industry trend

Rockstar isn’t alone. Around 1,900 Blizzard workers recently secured a union contract covering generative AI, layoffs and remote work, and the United Videogame Workers Union launched in 2025 amid industry-wide layoffs and AI fears. Industry watchers say a Rockstar win could encourage more unionisation across the sector.