We finally have a somewhat large development in the ongoing legal battle between Rockstar Games and the fired employees and the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain (IWGB).
On Monday, a judge ruled that Rockstar Games did not have to provide salary to the GTA 6 developers they are locked in a legal battle with. The Glasgow Employment Tribunal heard both sides of the case last week before coming to a decision for interim relief.
This Is Just The Beginning
The ruling is small victory for Rockstar but there is more nuance within the situation. It is important to remember this is only the first stage of the battle. Rockstar can still be found guilty of breaking UK law. There will be a full legal process and trial. As as we’ll get into later, Rockstar did not come out of this courtroom win today looking entirely spotless.
Bloomberg report that the criteria for interim relief during this stage is exceptionally high. The IWGB even said themselves it would have been unprecedented. When the case goes to trial, it will be lowered. This means Rockstar will have a more difficult time.
Despite the setback handed out today, the IWGB told Bloomberg they feel “confident than ever that a full and substantive tribunal will find Rockstar’s calculated attempt to crush a union to be not only unjust but unlawful.”
As reported by IGN, Rockstar said “We welcome the decision, which is consistent with Rockstar’s position throughout. We regret that we were put in a position where dismissals were necessary, but we stand by our course of action as supported by the outcome of this hearing.”
The Plot Thickens
“We’ll continue the fight to clear our names, regain our jobs and put an end to this chapter of our lives.” – Ex-Rockstar Employee
According to the judge, Rockstar fired some employees who barely posted anything to the Discord server at the centre of this scandal. This is a point against Rockstar. Whilst the judge said the tribunal could not conclude that unionising was the main reason for the dismissals, it was noted absolutely zero evidence Rockstar suffered any consequences of these Discord messages.
The IWGB told IGN that it was discovered Rockstar’s lawyers gained the Discord messages “without the knowledge of employees using Discord” and impersonated another a member of staff to covertly monitor the developers.
What do you think of the situation? Let us know down in the comments below. Be sure to stay tuned to RockstarINTEL for all the latest news on Rockstar Games and GTA VI.
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