Rockstar is preparing for the biggest game launch in the world, but some of its workers are now focused on a different fight inside the company. Staff at Rockstar’s UK studios have asked the company to voluntarily recognise the IWGB Game Workers Union. If the request succeeds, union members would gain a formal way to bargain with management over pay, working conditions, overtime, and workplace policies.
The request covers workers across Rockstar’s UK sites, including Edinburgh, Dundee, Lincoln, Leeds, and London. It is not a finished deal yet. Take-Two has acknowledged the request and said it will arrange a meeting.
Union recognition would give Rockstar workers a better way to raise workplace concerns together. Instead of each worker trying to handle issues alone, the union would be able to speak with management through a recognised process.
The IWGB says members want stronger pay transparency, better flexible working rules, and clear protections around workload. Those are serious issues at any large studio, but they carry extra weight at Rockstar because its games are known for long development cycles and huge production demands.
This is why the bid is important beyond one announcement. It is about whether workers at one of gaming’s biggest studios can secure a stronger say in how their workplace is run.
The 2025 firings are still part of the story
The union push also comes after Rockstar dismissed 31 union members in October 2025. Rockstar and Take-Two have said the workers were fired over confidentiality breaches. The IWGB has argued the dismissals were linked to union activity.
That dispute has not been fully settled, with an employment tribunal expected later in 2026. Until then, both sides are holding very different versions of what happened.
For the workers still organising, the recognition request is a way to keep moving. It shows the union effort did not end with those firings, even if the dispute has made the process harder.
Take-Two has not rejected the request outright. The company has said it values open dialogue and plans to meet.
That meeting will help decide what happens next. Recognition would give the IWGB a formal role in talks with Rockstar, but the company has to agree first, or the process could become more drawn out.
The careful point here is that workers have launched the bid. They have not won recognition yet. What happens next depends on how Rockstar and Take-Two respond.
The union bid is not only about GTA 6, but the game does add more attention to the moment. Rockstar is heading toward the November 19, 2026 launch of its biggest release in years, and the people making its games are under a rare level of public focus.
Players often talk about Rockstar’s detail, scale, and polish. This story shifts the focus to the developers behind that work and the conditions they are asking to change.
That does not mean the union request should be treated as launch drama. It is a workplace story first. The timing simply makes it harder for the wider industry to look away.
Union recognition at Rockstar would be a major moment for UK game workers. The studio is too visible for this to stay quiet, and any decision from Take-Two will be watched by developers far beyond Rockstar.
A recognised union would not solve every problem in the industry. It would give workers at one of the world’s most powerful game companies a stronger seat at the table.
For now, the request is on the table, the company has said it will meet, and Rockstar workers are trying to turn years of organising into something formal.
