TKO Tightens the Belt: WWE Employees Face Stricter Severance Terms, Layoffs Feared
In a move that’s sending shockwaves through Stamford, WWE has quietly rolled out a dramatic change to its severance policy — and many inside the company are calling it a “gut punch.”
According to PWInsider, WWE employees were notified Friday afternoon that the organization will no longer follow its traditional severance model. Instead, it’s adopting the policy framework of its parent company, TKO Group Holdings, marking yet another corporate shift in the post-merger era.
🆕 Old vs. New: Severance Gets Cut in Half
Under WWE’s former policy, employees were granted one full month of severance for every year they served the company — a standard many viewed as generous in the sports entertainment industry.
Effective immediately, however, that policy is out.
The new TKO-backed plan offers just two weeks of severance per year worked, slashing potential compensation for long-time employees. Additional caps are reportedly tied to an employee’s level in the corporate structure, though exact figures have not been released.
📉 Morale Takes a Major Hit
The announcement has not gone over well internally.
Sources describe the mood within WWE as deflated and frustrated, with several employees reportedly blindsided by the decision. The shift in benefits is especially jarring for those who’ve been with the company for over a decade — and who now find themselves taking on duties across WWE, UFC, and even PBR (Professional Bull Riders) under the broader TKO umbrella.
What was once a tight-knit wrestling empire is beginning to feel more like a cog in a massive sports conglomerate machine, and staff are noticing.
🫰Are Layoffs Looming?
Let’s be real — the timing of this severance cut has a lot of people backstage on edge. WWE hasn’t said the word “layoffs” out loud, but the writing feels dangerously close to being on the wall. Employees are already doing double duty across WWE, UFC, and PBR since the TKO merger, and now the safety net just got sliced in half. That’s not just a policy change — it’s a gut punch. After enduring wave after wave of restructuring last year, staffers are wondering if another round is coming, and this new severance rule might be TKO’s way of bracing for it. The anxiety is real, and so is the feeling that loyalty might not count for as much as it used to.
🎤 Wrestling.news | Backstage Take
This severance rollback sends a loud message: corporate consolidation is taking priority over loyalty. While TKO Group may be streamlining its bottom line, it’s doing so at the expense of WWE’s culture and long-standing workforce. In an industry built on passion, loyalty, and grind — this feels like another case of suits making the calls while the locker room and offices deal with the fallout.
When severance gets cut, so does trust.
