Rob Van Dam discusses the lawsuit.
Kevin Kelly and The Tate Twins (Brandon and Brent Tate) have brought a lawsuit against AEW in which they aim to void the arbitration clause of their talent contracts and request the court to certify a class-action suit against AEW regarding claims the company is misclassifying its wrestling talent as independent contractors, rather than employees.
Speaking on his 1 Of A Kind with RVD podcast, Rob Van Dam shared his thoughts on the lawsuit. He noted that lawyers tried to get similar cases going during his time in WWE, and it never worked out. RVD also stated that someone asked him if he wanted to talk to an individual who was heading a lawsuit regarding wrestlers being treated as independent contractors, and he confirmed that it was Andrew Yang. He also noted that he opted not to speak with Yang.
“I thought about it, just for the conversational value of it, but I feel pretty firm on my beliefs. I’m going against the grain, I’m not conforming to everybody else. Some people will tell me, they just assume, ‘I’m sorry, that’s not fair, how you guys get treated. You get treated like you’re employees with the job, but they don’t pay you like employees. That ain’t right.’ Hey, boundaries, bro. Don’t start telling me that you get my perspective when you haven’t even heard it,'" RVD said.
RVD went on to explain the differences between being an employee and being an independent contractor. He detailed how he preferred working as an independent contractor and agreeing to terms with someone. He then emphasized that he preferred being able to take care of his own business.
"When you are an employee for a place, you work for an employer, and then you get paid by the hour, whatever, and then they take out the taxes, whatever the terms are they comes with that job as an employee. When you’re an independent contractor, basically you’re your own boss, and then you set the terms on the agreement with somebody, and then you honor those terms. I’ve always enjoyed doing business like that. I always say this, if you’re not with me, listen to this. Would you rather work for me and get paid X amount of money and I’ll pay your insurance, you’ll be my employee, or would you rather get X X money, you’re an independent contractor, you take care of your own insurance? That usually wins people over. When you’re an independent contractor, that’s how it goes. You take care of yourself. You set up your own different bank accounts where you have to put money away for this, money for that. I’ve always enjoyed that. The insurgence is a big factor because they think if you’re an employee, then you get insurance. Okay. But also, if as an independent contractor, if I signed a three-year deal with somebody and said, ‘Hey, you know what, this is a dealbreaker. I need you to cover my insurance.’ Guess what? They would cover it. If I said, ‘I need to have a bus,’ they’re gonna cover it or not. That’s negotiating," RVD said.
RVD noted that some wrestlers negotiated for buses and other perks, but that was the way the business worked. He stated that unions tended to equalize everyone, and he wasn’t in favor of that. RVD also clarified that he would not want to stop anybody from being able to enjoy that if it was an upgrade.
“Personally, I’m not for equal treatment. I think unions tend to equalize everybody at a rate that I don’t necessarily want to give up, personally. If it ends up better for everybody else, and I’m moving on, all the young guys are coming up, it’s really better for everyone else to be employees and then fill out the [employee form], if that works better in the future, I wouldn’t want to stop anybody from being able to achieve that upgrade in life. But for me, whatever you need, put it on the agreement," RVD said.
RVD later described how wrestlers did not all need the same terms, and they did not get paid the same amount. He pointed out that it would be difficult to gauge how to pay everyone in an equalized setting, as wrestlers were responsible for selling tickets and tuning into the show. RVD also reiterated that he loved being an independent contractor.
"We don’t all need the same terms, we certainly don’t all get paid anywhere near the same, and should we? It’s the entertainment business. Do we all have equal value? It’s even hard to compare when you’re talkings about who’s selling the tickets and who are the people happier to see, and who’s keeping the people from turning the channel versus the people that they don’t care about, but we need people to fill those spots. We can’t pay them as much as the other people, can we? There’s just so much to it. I’ve always loved being an independent contractor and taking care of myself. I feel like if you’re responsible, that that is a better way, that it works for you. So that’s the way that I’ve always looked at it," RVD said.
RVD also explained that a union could affect many other companies outside of WWE and AEW. He later reiterated that he was thankful that he was in control of his business, and he preferred operating that way. He summarized his stance by saying that talent should be able to negotiate their terms as an independent contractor.
“I feel like you should negotiate the terms you want as an independent contractor, and I’m thankful that I’ve always been in control of all of my business in that way," he said.
Attorney Stephen P. New recently discussed the lawsuit. Click here to see what he had to say.
AEW issued a statement about the lawsuit. More information is available here.
Fightful will provide more information about the lawsuit as it becomes available.
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