Rockstar Games reveals update on internal gender pay gap changes

Dave Deiley
rockstar logo on game awards trophy

In a transparent move, and as part of Rockstar Games UK ongoing attempts to fix their documented gendered wage equality issues, the company has just released an internal report into the gender pay gap.

As part of a British government push for equality in the workplace, any workplace with more than 250 people are required to publish a report on gender breakdowns within their company’s structure. This covers a broad world of information regarding pay amounts, and percentages of men and women within four defined brackets of earning.

Rockstar Games UK, under the supervision of company Vice President Jennifer Kolbe, has just released the publicly accessible info onto the relevant government website.

Honing in on the companies goals as part of this process, Rockstar has committed to “fostering a supportive and inclusive working environment for everyone, including ongoing efforts to build a more equitable gender balance across all of [its] studios.”

Now, looking at such a delicate subject from a purely quantitative point of view is never going to give easy and quick answers about the state of company, or how they do their business. But Rockstar aims to address discrepancies within its newest report.

“For this past year, female headcount rose 15% as compared to a 12% increase in total headcount. However, as we bring more women into the company – not all of whom will be in senior positions – the gender pay gap will still see fluctuations year-to-year as it takes time for those women to rise through the company’s ranks”

Of particular interest is the company’s dedication to tackling  the invisible ways that opinions get formed. “Our global human resources team has undertaken unconscious bias training, and we have
announced to our teams that this is a mandatory training for all employees in 2022”

Getting into the hard data, Rockstar doesn’t hide the male dominance in its hiring and working processes. A breakdown of men and women in various pay bands gives startling insight into how women comprise only just over one in ten employees.

Direct data from Rockstars reports shows a spike of female employees at the lower end of the pay scale

As Rockstar have made clear that they are seeking to be at the forefront of inclusive hiring and working processes, the company also claimed it is “expanding HR systems options for gender identities beyond binary male/female choices to give staff more opportunity for self-expression.”

The expansion of gendered recognition within the company is of huge note, especially considering how that might change the stats that Rockstar have put forward. The gender pay gap here doesn’t take into account anyone outside of Male/Female.

About The Author

Dave is a former Dexerto writer. They nurtured a deep love for games ever since someone convinced them that holding down A increases the chances of your Pokeball working. They're Sekiro's slowest speedrunner and will happily lose to you in any multiplayer game. You can contact Dave at dave.deiley@dexerto.com