The Brass Ring Falsehood
If you’re reading this there is a high likelihood you already know how terribly wrestlers are treated by the companies they work for. Thankfully this past Sunday the HBO show Last Week Tonight decided to share that reality with a less wrestling literate audience. Since then, as WrestleMania approaches, the topic has been tossed around. So of course as the WWE gears up for their biggest weekend of the year their independent contractors are being asked about their status as “‘employees.” Chief among them was this response by The Miz.
It’s easy to listen to the Miz and become upset. And you really should. Miz is towing the company line, repeating the same phrases you’ve heard out of every wrestler’s mouth for decades now. It’s summed up best by Vince McMahon himself, “grab the brass ring.” A nearly nonsense phrase that really means step up and earn your spot. Nothing can be handed to you, you need to work for it. On its face it seems to make sense. You earn everything in life through dedication, passion, and hard work, right? But this is just a painful example of the WWE’s efforts to convince themselves, their wrestlers, and everyone else that this is all there is. Of course, they’re wrong.
Miz touts quite a lot in his answer. His wife, his movies, his television show, and a thirteen year career too. All of which is a wonderful reason to be grateful and satisfied with his position within the company and his efforts throughout his career. Especially if you consider that Miz did not come into the WWE as most other wrestlers did. From reality shows, to being on the lowest rung on the locker room ladder, to years of midcard hell bouncing from secondary championship to secondary championship. Miz has accomplished and struggled while working for the WWE and should absolutely be proud of what he’s done with the company. But it’s not enough.
Miz’s opportunities cannot be understated, but his sacrifices can’t be either. The WWE take care of the Miz only after years of hardship and still don’t classify him as an employee. Even after starring in their films, in their shows, and dedicating his life to the company he’s still only on contract. They still don’t pay his medical insurance, won’t cover injuries that occur away from the ring, and won’t allow him to capitalize on his hard work unless the WWE produces it and profits from it. The Miz, like every other wrestler, has earned all of his benefits but in reality he’s trapped in a WWE-shaped box. What more could The Miz, and every other wrestler, be doing with an offseason? Or a contract that allows them to wrestle elsewhere?
The Miz isn’t wrong, the WWE has created a lot of for him and his family. But the culture of that company teaches him, and every other wrestler, that they are in the best place for wrestling. They are trapped. WWE is the peak of the sport. Everywhere else is lackluster, less pay, and yields less opportunities. All of which is untrue.
The WWE has fooled an entire industry into believing that this is all there is. Independent contractors, no health coverage, no retirement plans, no drug treatments, and constant pressure to perform all year, every year, without pause. Time and again we see wrestlers speak out or examples of of change. CM Punk left the WWE because he was sick and injured and despite several personal health sacrifices the WWE ignored him. NJPW uses their wrestlers much less and often puts them in eight man tag matches, limiting their time in the ring and lessening injury risk. AEW hasn’t held a PPV yet and already has implemented changes in how they treat their employees when compared to other companies.
Wrestling is medieval and the WWE wants you to keep thinking that way. So long as The Miz, John Cena, the Rock, Stone Cold, and whoever else touts the company line and shrugs their shoulders at real problems and concerns, nothing will change. That is, of course, unless the fans do. Skip out of WrestleMania. Cancel your subscription. Unfollow their Twitter profiles. The WWE has been handed a free pass to operate at the expense of their wrestlers. If you really like wrestling, you don’t support any one company, you support the people who step into the ring and put their bodies in danger to entertain you. The Miz was right when he said he gets to make moments. Now the WWE needs to treat him, and every wrestler who has or will ever step into the ring for them, with basic human respect.
