Rockstar Games, the studio behind the blockbuster Grand Theft Auto series, is set to face legal action over claims that it unfairly dismissed 31 members of staff last year who had been working on the latest instalment of the franchise, Grand Theft Auto 6.

The Independent Workers of Great Britain (IWGB), an independent trade union representing the former employees, said Rockstar Games will appear before Glasgow Employment Tribunal from 10 September, with the hearing scheduled to run until 16 October, as the company faces allegations concerning the dismissals carried out in October. Under UK employment law, dismissal because of trade union activities is unlawful, and claims of blacklisting are also addressed by specific legislation covering the construction and related industries.

Rockstar Games, owned by US publisher Take-Two Interactive, is one of the most valuable studios in the industry, and the case arrives amid a broader period of labour organising across the games sector, which has seen workers at several major studios unionise in recent years over pay, crunch, and job security concerns.

The IWGB alleges the staff members were "targeted for their union activities," and further claims that the manner of their dismissal was "unlawful" and carried out "without disciplinary process or right of appeal."

The union also alleges that the studio "compiled and used lists" of the employees' names "for the purpose of discriminating against them" — effectively blacklisting them.

The hearing follows an interim ruling in June, in which a judge struck out Edinburgh-based Rockstar Games' application to remove the blacklisting allegations from the claim.

According to the union, employees who were in the office on the day of the dismissals were "called into meetings, told they were being fired with immediate effect and escorted from the building," while those not on the premises were allegedly "informed during phone calls lasting around two minutes before being locked out of their work accounts."

The legal action runs alongside ongoing negotiations between the Grand Theft Auto maker and the IWGB over formal recognition of working conditions for games developers. In June, the IWGB called on Rockstar Games to officially address issues around pay transparency, overtime expectations, and flexible working arrangements for its games developers.

"We believe Rockstar has tried to get away with Grand Theft Employment Rights. After a year of fighting to get answers, we hope this tribunal will finally back them into a corner and bring the truth to light," said Alex Marshall, president of the IWGB Union. The tribunal's findings could bear on those recognition talks, which remain ongoing ahead of the game's launch.

GTA 6 leak ahead of launch 'heartbreaking'

The latest instalment of the blockbuster franchise is expected to be the most successful video game launch of the decade and is due for release in November, following delays in releasing official updates on the launch.

In August, Rockstar Games issued a statement addressing a series of leaked videos of the game, having not addressed the leaks when they first appeared a week earlier. The studio described the leaks as "heartbreaking" for a company that had spent around 8 years working on Grand Theft Auto 6, adding that it was "not how we intended for you to see the game after all this time."

Rockstar Games were contacted for comment.