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Rockstar HR Questioned Over Discord ‘Mole’ as GTA 6 Tribunal Probes Delay Timing

By Govind Dheda October 9, 2026 7 min read

✅ CONFIRMED

Rockstar Games’ HR chief faced detailed questioning in Glasgow this week as the employment tribunal into the firing of 34 GTA 6 developers turned to two contested claims: an alleged Discord “mole” inside union discussions, and why the dismissals landed just days before Rockstar announced GTA 6’s delay to November 2026.

Quick answer: A Glasgow employment tribunal is hearing whether Rockstar fired 34 developers on 30 October 2025 for leaking confidential information, as the studio maintains, or for union activity, as the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain alleges. HR director Charlie Kinloch was questioned on 9 October 2026 about an alleged informant in a union Discord server and the timing of the firings. No ruling has been issued, and no change to GTA 6’s 19 November 2026 launch has been announced.

Key takeaways

34 developers — 31 in the UK and three in Canada — were dismissed on 30 October 2025, days before GTA 6 was delayed to 19 November 2026.
The claimants allege Rockstar monitored union organising in Discord through a junior employee referred to as “AB”.
Rockstar says the firings were for gross misconduct tied to confidential information in Discord, not union membership.
Kinloch told the tribunal the risk looked different in October 2025 because a commercially sensitive announcement was approaching.
The hearing is expected to run until around 16 October 2026; GTA 6 still launches 19 November 2026 on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

What happened at the latest GTA 6 Rockstar tribunal hearing?

The latest hearing put Charlie Kinloch, Rockstar Lincoln co-studio manager and HR director, under questioning about how management learned what was being said in a union-linked Discord server, and why material known earlier in 2025 only led to dismissals in late October. Kotaku reported the questioning on 9 October 2026.

Kinloch’s explanation, as reported, was that October 2025 changed the risk: a major announcement was approaching, public interest was at a peak, and Discord membership was growing with many names management could not identify. Days after the firings, Rockstar announced GTA 6 would move from May 2026 to November 2026 — the sequence the claimants’ lawyer pressed on. See our GTA 6 release date countdown hub.

What is the Discord ‘mole’ claim at the centre of the case?

The claimants say a junior employee, referred to in disclosure as “AB”, passed screenshots and information from union Discord activity to Kinloch from at least February 2024. Game Developer’s summary of the claimants’ filing describes repeated communications over roughly 21 months, with union membership numbers and individual activists identified to management.

On their account, that flow told management when the union passed the 10 per cent UK recognition threshold on 18 October 2025; dismissal lists followed by 29 October. Rockstar maintains AB shared information voluntarily. AB is not being questioned as a witness, itself a point of legal argument.

Why does Rockstar say the 34 developers were fired?

Rockstar says all 34 dismissals were for gross misconduct after confidential company information was shared in Discord. When the tribunal opened, the studio said individuals in the UK and Canada were dismissed following the sharing of confidential company information, not because of alleged trade union membership or activity, and that it would defend the claims vigorously.

Its opening filing, summarised by Game Developer, describes Discord as three rooms, the largest holding almost 350 people — many under aliases — when Rockstar gained access in October 2025. Rockstar says that room included former employees, competitors and at least one journalist, and cites its wider leak history, including the 2022 GTA 6 breach, as why personal-device Discord sat outside its controls.

What do the fired developers say happened to them?

The claimants say they were called into brief meetings on 30 October 2025 with no specific allegation identified and no chance to answer it before being handed dismissal letters and escorted out. The IWGB calls the dismissals unlawful union busting with no disciplinary process or appeal. The tribunal has not ruled on those claims.

Does the tribunal change GTA 6’s release date?

No change has been announced. GTA 6 is still scheduled to launch on 19 November 2026 for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, and neither Rockstar nor Take-Two Interactive has linked the tribunal to any schedule change. The connection being examined is historical: the claimants argue the firings were timed around the delay announcement in late October 2025, not that the hearing will move the launch.

For players, the practical roadmap is unchanged. Launch timing is covered in our GTA 6 global launch times guide and our GTA 6 pre-load and download size guide, pricing in GTA 6 price and editions compared, and the music rollout in our GTA 6 radio stations first six revealed report.

Claimants vs Rockstar: the two cases side by side

Question	Claimants / IWGB	Rockstar Games
Why were 34 staff fired on 30 Oct 2025?	Targeted for union organising after the 10% recognition threshold was reached.	Gross misconduct: confidential information shared in Discord.
What was AB’s role?	A “mole” feeding screenshots, membership numbers and activist names to HR from at least Feb 2024.	An employee who shared information voluntarily; the concern was leaking, not union status.
Why October 2025?	Timing shows motive: threshold crossed 18 Oct, firings began 30 Oct, delay announced days later.	Timing shows risk: a major announcement was imminent and Discord membership was expanding fast.
How were staff dismissed?	Brief meetings, generic letters, no specific allegation, no appeal.	Defends the dismissals as lawful and rejects the union-busting claims.

What this means

This hearing is about which story explains the same calendar: monitoring from February 2024, a threshold crossed on 18 October 2025 and firings on 30 October — or a 350-person Discord becoming a live leak risk ahead of an imminent delay announcement. Fired staff have asked players not to boycott the game but to support their case. A ruling follows a hearing expected to run until around 16 October 2026.

Frequently asked questions

What is the GTA 6 Rockstar tribunal about?

It is a Glasgow employment tribunal hearing claims from developers dismissed on 30 October 2025. The IWGB says they were fired for union activity; Rockstar says they were fired for gross misconduct after confidential information was shared in Discord. The tribunal has not ruled.

Who is Charlie Kinloch and why was he questioned?

Kinloch is Rockstar Lincoln co-studio manager and HR director. He was questioned about information he received from a junior employee referred to as “AB” about union Discord activity, and about why action came in October 2025 rather than earlier.

Did the tribunal delay GTA 6?

No. GTA 6 was delayed from May 2026 to 19 November 2026 in late October 2025, days after the firings. The claimants argue that timing is evidence about why the firings happened; the hearing itself has not changed the 19 November 2026 launch date.

How many developers were fired?

34 in total: 31 in the UK and three in Canada. Rockstar says three of those fired in Canada were not union members and were dismissed for similar misconduct, a point it uses against the union-motive claim.

When will the tribunal finish?

The hearing is expected to run until around 16 October 2026, per reporting on the tribunal schedule. A ruling would follow after the hearing concludes.

Sources

Every claim above was verified against Kotaku’s report of the 9 October 2026 questioning and Game Developer’s summary of both sides’ opening filings, cross-checked against AFP reporting in Malay Mail. Where the sides disagree, both accounts are attributed and no ruling is presented as fact. The hearing schedule and 19 November 2026 launch date were checked on 10 October 2026.