LONDON: Rockstar Games, the studio behind the highly anticipated video game Grand Theft Auto VI, will appear before an employment tribunal in Glasgow from Thursday over the sacking of 31 workers.

Since the 1997 original, the gangster shooter Grand Theft Auto series has sold over 470 million copies worldwide.

The union bringing the case said on Monday the hearing before the Glasgow employment tribunal will run from Sept 10 to Oct 16.

It comes before the Nov 19 launch of the sixth instalment in the GTA series, which the company is developing in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Accused by the company of having shared confidential information, 31 employees were dismissed in Britain in October last year, sparking protests outside the group’s offices.

The Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) accuses Rockstar of targeting workers because of trade union activities and blacklisting them.

The IWGB said in a statement that the company denied them “basic procedural protections by refusing to follow a disciplinary process or provide right of appeal”.

Rockstar Games said the employees had been dismissed over messages posted on a private union channel on Discord, in violation of their confidentiality agreements.

Published in Dawn, September 8th, 2026