The Australian government is not done talking about Grand Theft Auto VI and your work calendar just yet. Weeks after it explained how to ask for unpaid leave, the country's workplace regulator is back with a follow-up, and this one reads like a gentle warning. If your big plan for November 19 is to call in sick and play all day, the government wants you to know your boss can ask for proof.
The Fair Work Ombudsman, Australia's workplace watchdog, has spent weeks as the most unlikely Grand Theft Auto account on the internet. Its first post treated the launch as a teachable moment about unpaid leave. The new one tackles the classic Aussie sickie with a reminder about existing rules.
In its latest Instagram post, the regulator keeps the tone light but the message firm. "Hey everyone, we just wanna make something clear," it opens, before spelling out that sick leave on or around November 19, or any other day, is for genuine illness or injury and that "your employer can ask for evidence that shows you weren't able to work." A medical certificate or a statutory declaration, in other words. We covered the Ombudsman's first unpaid-leave post when it went up and this is the sequel nobody asked for and everybody needed.
The reminder comes amid a wave of plans to take time off for GTA 6. Rockstar Games' launch has pushed workers worldwide to book the day, with HR data showing a time-off surge that Grand Theft Auto V, the second best-selling video game of all time, never caused. One company is shutting down entirely so its staff can play, and an analyst reckons the launch could cost the US economy a billion dollars in a single day. The Ombudsman's message focuses on the leave rules.
It is not only office workers either. F1 champion Lewis Hamilton says he will cancel work to play, a games studio handed its whole team December off and Cara Delevingne, who voices DJ Cara in the games, booked two full weeks. For the nine-to-five crowd clearing their calendars, the Ombudsman's reminder is simple: sick leave is not for faking a fever.
Your leave options for the GTA 6 launch
Leave type | What it means for November 19 |
|---|---|
Annual (paid) leave | Booked in advance and approved, the safest route |
Unpaid leave | A request your employer can grant or refuse, no automatic right |
Sick or carer's leave | For genuine illness or injury, and your employer can ask for evidence |
Chucking a sickie | Faking risks disciplinary action if you cannot show proof of illness |
Only genuine illness qualifies for sick leave and the Ombudsman says you may need to provide proof when requested by your employer.
Annual leave booked in advance and approved is the safest route. Unpaid leave is a polite ask your employer can grant or refuse, while sick leave is for genuine illness or injury and your employer can ask you for evidence such as a medical certificate or statutory declaration. This isn't a threat but a reminder that the rules do not pause for a game launch.
For a series built on breaking every rule in the virtual world, it is funny that GTA VI has governments reminding people to follow the rules in the real one and law enforcement begging for the game to launch so that they can relax.
With that said, the safest heist on November 19 is the boring one, book the leave the day after the launch, tell the truth and keep the receipts. Vice City will still be there when you clock off.