Death of an Indian tech worker
A wave of suicides and widespread AI-fueled layoffs reveal a workforce under extreme pressure.
by Parth MN
Rest of World
January 27, 2026
https://restofworld.org/2026/india-tech-workers-crisis-suicide/
Ubisoft close the studio behind Assassin's Creed Rebellion days after the developers vote to unionise - https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/ubisoft-close-the-studio-behind-assassins-creed-rebellion-days-after-the-developers-vote-to-unionise #UbisoftHalifax #unionisation #Ubisoft #Layoffs
Dipendenti id Software (Doom) votano per formare un sindacato, un passo cruciale nell'industria videoludica USA. Segno di crescente insoddisfazione contro crunch e condizioni lavoro, potrebbe ispirare altri. Punto di svolta.
#Notizievideogiochi #gamingnews #Videogiochi #idSoftware #Microsoft #union #unionisation
đ https://www.absolutegamer.it/rivoluzione-tech-sviluppatori-riconquistano-controllo-settore/
Id Software devs form "wall-to-wall" union, with 165 workers at Doom studio the latest to vote in favour - https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/id-software-devs-form-wall-to-wall-union-with-165-workers-at-doom-studio-the-latest-to-vote-in-favour #Shooter:FirstPerson #Doom:TheDarkAges #unionisation #SinglePlayer #Firstperson #idSoftware #Shooter #unions #union
Video game workers across Europe fight back against exploitation, AI and layoffs in "historic milestone" for union efforts
Rockstar North Faces Union-Busting Allegations as 200+ Staff Condemn Firing of 31 Employees
One of Scotlandâs largest games studios, Rockstar, is at the centre of a major industrial dispute, with the Independent Workersâ Union of Great Britain (IWGB) accusing the company of âunion-bustingâ and initiating legal action following the abrupt dismissal of 31 employees.
The move has been met with widespread condemnation from staff. In a letter to senior management, more than 200 Rockstar North employees condemned the sackings and demanded the immediate reinstatement of their colleagues, all of whom in the UK were members of the IWGB.
The dispute stems from the abrupt dismissal of dozens of staff earlier this month. Rockstarâs parent company, Take-Two Interactive, initially cited âgross misconductâ before later alleging the fired employees had leaked sensitive company information.
Take-Twoâs CEO, Strauss Zelnick, told IGN that the company was âproud of its culture,â and the company stated the sackings were âin no way related to peopleâs right to join a union.â
This claim has been firmly rejected by staff and the IWGB. Union reps allege the workers were âfired illegally for unionisingâ via a private, legally-protected trade union Discord channel. The IWGB has filed a legal claim against Rockstar for what it calls a clear case of âvictimisation and collective dismissal.â
âWe are confident that what weâve seen here is plain and simple union busting, and we will mount a full legal defence,â said Alex Marshall, IWGB president. âEmployers like Rockstar would do well to understand that private spaces such as trade union Discord servers have protections, and that their companyâs contractual clauses do not supersede UK law.â
The Rockstar layoffs have already sparked protests outside Rockstarâs Edinburgh HQ. According to reports from RockPaperShotgun, union activity had intensified following the developerâs return-to-office mandate last year, with staff alleging the firings occurred shortly after the union hit the legal minimum for formal recognition.
The story has also escalated to a political level. Speaking in the Commons, Edinburgh West MP Christine Jardine confirmed that several of her constituents were directly affected and that she had written to Rockstar for more information, with the government promising to take the matter forward to ministers. In addition, Annie Wells MSP contacted the Scottish Games Network directly, to ask for the issue to be added to the agenda for the planned Games CPG.
The IWGB has pledged to âpursue all avenuesâ to see its members reinstated and has vowed to hold further demonstrations.
Protest and Support Fund
Despite the postponement of todayâs scheduled Cross-Party Group meeting on the games ecosystem, the IWGB has confirmed that a planned demonstration will go ahead this evening.
Protesters and supporters are set to gather outside Rockstar Northâs headquarters on Holyrood Road at 5:00 PM today (Tuesday, November 18th). The group will then march from the studio to the Scottish Parliament to highlight their case.
In parallel with the legal and direct action, a crowdfunding campaign has been launched to support the workers affected by the Rockstar layoffs. The fund aims to provide immediate financial relief to those who have suddenly lost their income.
#edinburgh #games #grossMisconduct #layoffs #openLetter #rockstar #scotland #unionisation
As Rockstar accuse fired staff of leaking secrets, unions launch street protests against publisher Take-Two - https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/as-rockstar-accuse-fired-staff-of-leaking-secrets-unions-launch-street-protests-against-publisher-take-two #MultiplayerCooperative #MultiplayerCompetitive #Shooter:ThirdPerson #Take-TwoInteractive #GrandTheftAutoVI #ActionAdventure #IWGBGameWorkers #RockstarGames #XboxSeriesX/S #unionisation #SinglePlayer #Thirdperson #Firstperson #Fullproduct #OpenWorld
"It is also the only factory NEXT has chosen to close, despite operating two other non-unionised factories nearby. The implications are clear: this is union-busting dressed up as business strategy."
#LabourStart #unionize #unionisation #solidarity #TradeUnions @LOiO #SriLanka #NEXTplc
There has been a LOT of human job losses due to #AI in the #GameDevelopment industry. Good to see folks taking a stand!
Pay rises, AI regulation, and layoff protection: what #ActivisionBlizzard's newly unionised employees want from #Microsoft
A big development.
By Connor Makar, Published on Aug. 22, 2025
Excerpt: "[Scott Alsworth from the #UK's #IWGB Union] credits the increase in #unionisation efforts to several factors: #TechnologicalDisplacement (especially poignant with the push for #AI), a greater number of #WorkingClass people joining the video game industry who bring a greater awareness of unionisation, and a response to the state of the industry as a whole."
#Unionise #Unionize #GameDevelopment #AISucks #JobDisplacement #HumanJobs #VideoGames #VideoGamingNews
âA job in industry is also now harder to attain. Modern #factories are high-tech, run by #engineers and #technicians. In the early 1980s #BlueCollar assemblers, machine operators and repair workers made up more than half of the #manufacturing workforce.
Today they account for less than a third. #Whitecollar professionals outnumber blue-collar factory-floor workers by a wide margin. Even once obtained, a #FactoryJob is far less likely to be unionised than in previous decades, with membership having fallen from one in four workers in the 1980s to less than one in ten today.
In order to find the modern equivalent of such jobs, we looked for #employment with the same traits. What offers decent #pay, #unionisation, requires no #degree and can soak up the male workforce?
The result: mechanics, repair technicians, security workers and the skilled trades.â
<https://archive.md/L1J7W> (paywall) / <https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2025/06/10/factory-work-is-overrated-here-are-the-jobs-of-the-future>
Union workers at Fallout and Elder Scrolls company ready to strike against Microsoft after two years of haggling - https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/union-workers-at-fallout-and-elder-scrolls-company-ready-to-strike-against-microsoft-after-two-years-of-haggling #unionisation #ZeniMaxMedia #unionization #Microsoft
#Japan's plight of low money wages & low #inflation is down to #unionisation levels next to zero and cultural aspects of total deference to the employer, no matter the level of #unemployment.
Money wages are set with regard both to internal labour efficiency (Stiglitz's "efficiency wages") and/or levels of #unionisation.
#Employment is determined ex ante by the firm's #expectations on demand for for its produce; then, money wages are negotiated for ex post.
Thus, there's neither an empirically consistent nor a theoretical link between #unemployment & #inflation, hence no #NAIRU (cf James Galbraith).
#Amazon #Coventry: employees voting on #unionization after #wildcat and #SitDownStrikes
https://labornotes.org/2024/07/will-immigrant-workers-britain-win-europes-first-amazon-union
#UK #unionisation #union #unions #strike #strikes #WildCatStrikes #BHX4 #UnionBusting #GMB #ADAPT #capitalism #exploitation #ClassWar
How do we stop the next round of games industry mass layoffs? - https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/how-do-we-stop-the-next-round-of-games-industry-mass-layoffs?utm_source=feed&utm;_medium=rss&utm;_campaign=feed #unionisation #Layoffs
"In Seattle, Amazon's tech workers walked out in sympathy with Amazon's warehouse workers, because they're all workers.
The only reason the tech workers aren't monitored by AI that notifies their managers if they visit the toilet during working hours is their rapidly dwindling bargaining power. The way things are going, Amazon programmers are going to be pissing in bottles next to their workstations."
#CoryDoctorow, 2024
https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/30/go-nuts-meine-kerle/#ich-bin-ein-bratapfel
#Microsoft agrees to neutrality on #unionisation, provide training on #AI, discuss threats to employee livelihoods
#unionization #union #unions #UnionStrong #AFLCIO #unionize #unionise
@nap @Daojoan And if you are a tech worker in the UK and are interested in organising but don't know where to start, check out https://www.techworkers.network/
CD Projekt staff form union after layoffs - and want everybody in the industry to join - https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/cd-projekt-staff-form-union-after-layoffs-and-want-everybody-in-the-industry-to-join #Cyberpunk2077:PhantomLiberty #BandaiNamcoEntertainment #MultiplayerCompetitive #TheWitcher3:WildHunt #WarnerBros.Games #ActionAdventure #XboxSeriesX/S #Cyberpunk2077 #SinglePlayer #CDProjektRED #unionisation #unionization #TheWitcher4 #Thirdperson #Firstperson #CDProjekt #XboxOne #Shooter
General Motors UAW Strike: UAW President Shawn Fain on Friday expanded the first-ever simultaneous strike against the Detroit Three to a GM ...
UAW President Shawn Fain on Friday expanded the first-ever simultaneous strike against the Detroit Three to a GM Lansing plant and Ford Motor Chicago assembly plant, but Stellantis was spared after last-minute concessions by the Chrysler parent.#Industry #GeneralMotorsUAWStrike #Ford #UAWStrike #UnitedAutoWorkersStrikeGM #GMPlantStrikeAutoWorkers #LabourStrike #Unionisation
GM furloughs another 160 workers due to UAW strike
