GRAND Theft Auto (GTA) workers have staged a protest as an employment tribunal over alleged unfair dismissal begins in Glasgow.
The tribunal, which is between employer Rockstar Games – which makes GTA – and the Independent Workers of Great Britain (IWGB) union, takes place from Thursday until October 16 at the Glasgow Tribunal Centre.
It comes after more than 30 workers were dismissed from Rockstar Games last October.
At the time of their dismissal, the former employees said they had been working on Grand Theft Auto VI, which is set to be the biggest media release of all time when it comes out on November 19.
The IWGB claims that on the day of the dismissals, employees at the Rockstar North office in Edinburgh were called into meetings, told they were being fired with immediate effect and escorted from the building.
Workers who were not at the office alleged they were informed during phone calls lasting around two minutes, before being locked out of their work accounts.
During the hearing, the IWGB will allege that workers were unlawfully blacklisted and targeted for their union activities.
They will also allege that the manner in which they were dismissed – without disciplinary process or right of appeal – was also unlawful.
Rockstar has said the employees were dismissed over messages posted in a private union Discord channel which it claims breached their confidentiality agreements.
The union has denied this and maintains that the dismissals were an attack on the workers' union activity.
The workers are seeking reinstatement or, failing that, compensation, as well as a finding from the tribunal that their dismissals were unfair.
The legal battle is taking place alongside ongoing negotiations between Rockstar and the IWGB over formal union recognition, which the union hopes will be secured before the release of GTA VI.
If an agreement is reached, Rockstar would become the biggest recognised unionised game studio in the UK.
On Thursday morning, workers launched a crowdfunder to help cover the legal costs of the tribunal.
Instead of boycotting GTA VI, the workers have asked supporters to donate to their fundraiser instead as a more effective way to hold Rockstar to account.
IWGB president Alex Marshall accused Rockstar of trying to "get away with Grand Theft Employment rights".
"As the world gets its first proper look at GTA VI, this hearing will give people a chance to look behind the scenes at what happened to the workers who helped make it," he said.
Speaking at Thursday's protest, former Rockstar worker Jacob Jones said: “I was a Rockstar fan for many years before I ever worked there. For 20 years, I collected Rockstar merchandise. I had autographs from Sam and Dan Houser, the co-founders of Rockstar, and I treasured the history of the company and what it stood for.
"So when I finally got the opportunity to work for Rockstar, it meant an enormous amount to me. We didn’t join a union because we wanted to destroy Rockstar. We joined because we cared about the company and wanted things to improve.
"Instead, I have been deeply disappointed by how the situation has been handled and by the way I feel employees have been treated by management, including the 34 people who have been dismissed. What has happened has had a lasting impact on my personal life and, from my perspective, has effectively destroyed the career and life I built in Scotland.
"Today, we are standing outside this courthouse because we are seeking justice.”
Meanwhile, former Rockstar employee Jason Lewis said: "For almost a year, the truth about what happened to us has been buried by Rockstar and surrounded by speculation. Now we finally get the chance to put it on the record.
"None of us imagined that talking to each other about our working conditions would turn our lives upside down and catapult us into the centre of a global media storm."
He added: "As the world prepares for the release of GTA VI, we are reliving the heartbreak of being thrown out of a project we poured so much of our lives into.
"We lost our jobs, our income, our community and the chance to see the game through to release after spending years helping to build it. It was devastating.
"We have fought tooth and nail to get to this point, not just to be able to win justice for ourselves, but to draw a line in the sand for any employer that thinks it can attack workers for unionising.
"It has been an emotional journey and it is not over yet, but we can now see the finish line, and justice at last feels within reach.”
A spokesperson for Rockstar Games said: “Rockstar Games' position has been clear and consistent throughout.
"Individuals across the UK and Canada were dismissed for gross misconduct following the sharing of confidential company information, not because of alleged trade union membership or activity. We reject the claims and will defend them vigorously before the tribunal.”
