See more of Dutch Brief in your Google search results
One of the most hyped video game releases ever is nearly here, and it’s making an impact in an unexpected way: Dutch staff calendars. Rockstar Games will release Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA 6) on Thursday, 19 November, and HR companies are seeing a clear jump in leave requests for that day, especially from younger men who seem to prefer gaming over working.
What the numbers show
Radio station BNR reported the trend after checking with several HR platforms. At HR company Remote, which works in almost every country, leave booked for 19 November is nearly a third higher than on the same date last year. For full-time employees worldwide, bookings are up 32%, the biggest increase for any single workday in 2026 outside of major holidays. In the Netherlands, leave booked for the release date is about 20% higher than last year, putting the country eighth in Remote’s global ranking (Italy is first).
The differences by age and gender are especially noticeable. At Dutch scheduling software company Dyflexis, after the release date was announced, men aged 20 to 40 submitted 289% more leave requests for 19 November than the year before. Overall, Dyflexis saw about 7% more leave scheduled for that day, counting both formal requests and people marking themselves unavailable, including part-time and on-call workers. Not everyone who asked for the day off will actually get it.
SPONSORED
You’re overpaying your accountant. And they still don’t call you back.
Neno gives you a dedicated bookkeeper, automated admin, real-time financial insights and a free business bank account. Everything your business needs, in one place.
No chasing. No surprises. No unnecessary costs.
Young men in, older men out
The effect is mostly seen among younger people. Dyflexis found no real change in leave requests from women, and interestingly, men over 40 are doing the opposite of their younger coworkers: requests from that group were about 28% lower than last year. The data doesn’t show whether the over-40s are choosing to hold down the fort or are just less interested in Vice City.
A very Dutch enthusiasm
The Netherlands seems especially enthusiastic. BNR reports that, relative to population, “GTA 6” is searched for on Google more in the Netherlands than anywhere else in the world. The game is the first major new entry in the series in over a decade and launches on 19 November for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. A PC version is rumoured for early 2027. The game is rated 18+.
For employers, this situation is a light-hearted but real scheduling challenge, and it shows how big these cultural moments have become. Some analysts estimate the launch could cost the US economy about a billion dollars in lost productivity. At least one American company went viral for making 19 November a company-wide day off instead of trying to prevent absences. Dutch managers, seeing their own wave of well-timed requests, might consider doing the same.