Workers are projected to take leave on November 19 as Grand Theft Auto VI debuts following a thirteen-year franchise hiatus, prompting a surge of leave requests and economic forecasts.
Global Workplaces Brace for Absence Spikes
The impending release of Rockstar Games’ open-world title has triggered a measurable surge in workforce leave applications across multiple continents.
Remote, a global HR platform, reported that full-time employee leave bookings for November 19 sit nearly a third higher than they did on the same date last year, according to NL Times. Dyflexis scheduling software data indicates that young men have submitted 289 percent more leave requests for the launch date than usual.
Grand Theft Auto VI is now only one week away! Thank you to everyone in the community for your incredible support. There’s still time to pre-order and pre-load so you’re ready on launch day. Code-in-box versions are also available now for pick-up at retailers worldwide. pic.twitter.com/au3uAf6p5w
Similar trends appear across international markets. The UK Daily Star cited an HR company estimating 1.2 million British workers would take annual leave, while a broadband comparison service placed that figure at 2.5 million, including 900,000 workers feigning illness based on a survey of 1,000 people, The Guardian reported. In Australia, Nine News warned that productivity could grind to a 70 million Australian dollar halt, while 7 News cited shift-work platform data predicting heavy absenteeism.
Not all companies are fighting the trend. Japanese developer Pocketpair announced that all employees intending to play Grand Theft Auto VI receive a special five-day holiday from November 19 to 23, Push Square reported. Logitech introduced Logi Game Day to give its roughly 7,000 employees worldwide a dedicated day off for video games, Notebookcheck reported. “It's time to retire the stereotype that gaming is a waste of time” Logitech CEO Hanneke Faber said.
Economic Impact Figures Face Scrutiny
Viral headlines warning of a one billion dollar blow to the US economy trace back to back-of-the-napkin math rather than rigorous empirical analysis.
The figure originated from a July 2025 article by a Spanish broadcaster quoting José García-Montalvo, an economics professor at the University of Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona, who did not respond to requests for comment, The Guardian reported. Despite the lack of verified data, the statistic has been repeated widely across media outlets.
Workplace regulators have also responded to the impending release. Australia’s Fair Work Ombudsman used Instagram to clarify that unpaid leave cannot be taken for video games and reminded employees that employers can request evidence for single-day sick leave, The Guardian reported. “a lot of people will be calling in sick on November 19” Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick previously joked in April.
Tribunal Dates Align With Launch Week
While public attention focuses on absenteeism and leisure policies, a serious labor dispute involving the publisher proceeds concurrently. In October, Rockstar Games dismissed 34 employees in the UK and Canada, “blatant and ruthless act of union busting” the Independent Workers' Union of Great Britain described the action as, The Guardian reported. Rockstar alleged the employees leaked confidential information.
Will Mesilane, an Australian developer who worked on the game for two years from Rockstar’s Edinburgh office, was among the dismissed employees and lost his skilled worker visa status, forcing him and his partner to relocate to Australia.
“A two-minute phone call caused devastation to our lives that is still ongoing more than a full year later,” Mesilane told The Guardian. Closing submissions for the case before the Glasgow employment tribunal are scheduled for November 17 and 18, placing the legal proceedings directly in the week of the game’s release.
