WWE is Doing Better at Removing Problematic People from Company

While there’s still work to be done, WWE has shown that problematic employees are less likely to find a haven within the company.

One of the big wrestling stories from last week was the surprising — but not shocking — release of Big Cass from his WWE contract. Lots of rumors have abounded since the news broke as to why it happened. But it seems like one of the big reasons was his alleged poor behavior towards Carmella backstage recently.

For a business that seems to be plagued with bad behavior at almost all corners, it’s refreshing to see WWE making strides in this aspect. Because if you sit down to think about it, there’s been no shortage of problematic personalities within WWE that are either gone or “reassigned” over the past few years.

The most notable change in this regard has to be JBL. In 2017, the former WWE Champion announced he was stepping away from his role as an announcer for SmackDown Live to focus on humanitarian work. While that is likely the case, it can’t be ignored that a few months earlier, JBL was implicated in Mauro Ranallo leaving WWE and the SmackDown booth. (Ranallo has stated on more than one occasion that JBL had nothing to do with his leaving, so don’t accuse me of spreading false rumors!)

Part of the reason JBL was brought up was because of his history of hazing and bullying other superstars. Back in the day, it was considered “boys will be boys” behavior. But after accusations of misconduct by Bill DeMott, former head trainer of NXT, such behavior could no longer be tolerated.

More from Daily DDT

• It’s time for Adam Cole and MJF to drop the ROH tag team titles
• Tom Lawlor talks MLW return, AEW opportunity, CM Punk’s WWE return and more
• Eddie Kingston stands to gain the most from the AEW Continental Classic
• Trish Stratus on WWE NXT would help elevate that women’s division
• Randy Orton signs with SmackDown to go after The Bloodline

Besides DeMott, several superstars have been terminated under WWE’s Code of Business Conduct Policy. Part of that policy deals with Employee Conduct, and violation could result in termination. Rich Swann was first indefinitely suspended, then released from his WWE contract after he was arrested on domestic violence charges (that were since dropped). Enzo Amore was dealt with the same way — suspension, then termination — after failing to inform WWE he was being investigated on possible rape charges (the case was ultimately dropped).

The company is not perfect in this regard by any means. You could make a pretty strong case about institutional racism still permeating most aspects of production — how many POCs have become world champion? And even though there’s been more acceptance of LGBTQ persons, we still were treated to that wonderful segment featuring Bobby Lashley’s “sisters” earlier this year. And let’s not forget that even though he’s been scrubbed from existence for now, there’s constantly rumors of Hulk Hogan returning to WWE despite his poor behavior.

Next: Nia Jax Went Too Far With Tweet About Alexa Bliss's Tattoo

But since WWE went public, and thus more corporate, in the mid 1990s, the company has set a decent example for how to handle problematic behavior. There’s always room for improvement, but the Worldwide Leader in Sports Entertainment is one of the leaders in excising bad behavior from the company as well.