Rockstar Lincoln HR director and co-studio manager Charlie Kinloch was questioned on October 9 at a Glasgow employment tribunal over management's access to a worker Discord server before Rockstar dismissed 34 employees in October 2025. The Times reports that more than 20 former workers, supported by the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain, allege they were unfairly dismissed for trade union activity. Rockstar says the firings were for gross misconduct involving confidential information.
According to Kotaku, the claimants say an employee identified as AB passed screenshots about activity in the server to Kinloch for more than two years. They also contend that information reached management showing the organizing group was 12 members short of the threshold needed for formal union recognition. Kotaku reports that Kinloch denied having an interest in or knowledge of workers' union status and said his concern was the risk of leaks.
Kinloch testified that the situation felt more urgent in October 2025 because the Discord's membership was expanding, some identities were unknown, and comments about internal processes could be commercially damaging near a sensitive announcement. The two sides dispute the server's security: the workers say access to union channels was restricted and identities were authenticated, while Rockstar says at least one journalist was present elsewhere on the server and confidential game details were discussed.
The Times says Kinloch acknowledged taking screenshots and later deleting locally held copies because he considered that storage too exposed. He denied trying to destroy evidence and said the same material remained available on the server. A lawyer for the former workers argued that Rockstar's investigation was unlawful and treated similar conduct inconsistently. The tribunal has not yet issued a final ruling.
