How Hulk Hogan Killed Jesse Ventura's Wrestling Union In The 1980s
Daniel Davis 
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With professional wrestlers’ status as “independent contractors,” there has been a debate that comes up from time to time regarding wrestling unions, most recently, several years back when Zelina Vega was unceremoniously let go from WWE because she refused to get rid of her Twitch account. Both politician Andrew Yang (who actually is a big wrestling fan and has been working with Jesse Ventura to start a new political party) and actress Gabrielle Carteris (best known for her work on 90210), as the head of Screen Actors Guild, reached out to the wrestler when she was released.
Related: 10 Rare Times Hulk Hogan Actually Gave Back To The Wrestling Business
Seldom has a wrestler tried to unionize the business, however. Much like everything else in the world, there are varying schools of thought. Some folks enjoy the autonomy that being an independent contractor can have as opposed to being locked into deals agreed upon in union contracts. Of course, proponents believe that collective bargaining will at least ensure health care and pensions. A union almost happened during the 80s thanks to Jesse Ventura, but it was Hulk Hogan who told Vince McMahon about it, and the movement was squashed.
Wrestlers Have Always Been Independent Contractors
Long before WWE and now AEW came around, wrestlers worked all over the country, moving from territory to territory, often times moving with their families, or wondering where their next paycheck would come from, depending on which territory and which promoter they’d be working for. During these times, wrestlers were one hundred percent at the mercy of the promoter from when they’d be booked, where they would be booked, and how much they’d be paid.
Unfortunately, it was all arbitrary for the most part. Certainly promoters had notebooks and their various methods, but there was no centralized system in place for the wrestlers. There still isn’t. While the business has gone corporate, wrestlers are still independent contractors who have to fend for themselves when it comes to taxes and savings plans. Some wrestlers prefer to be independent contractors, that way they can negotiate their own pay. In theory, a wrestling union would help the superstars obtain health insurance, savings plans, and stabilized pay schedules.
Jesse Ventura’s Take On Independent Contractors
Jesse "The Body Ventura" had a thought to get a Union going years ago. The former Governor of Minnesota has given several explanations over the years as to why wrestling needs a union. He was on "Stone Cold" Steve Austin’s old podcast years ago stating that Vince McMahon was lucky Jesse Ventura didn’t become a senator, because he would have launched an investigation as to why wrestlers are called independent contractors in the first place. The wrestlers only work for one company and get ordered around. The only reason they’re not employees is so that Vince doesn’t have to do things like pay Social Security, which employers have to do when they hire employees.
Related: 10 Things People Should Know About Jesse Ventura's Wrestling Career
"I would have investigated that because, to me, look at the thousands of dollars it [has] cost all of us wrestlers to have to pay 15% or whatever it is as an independent contractor on our taxes. That’s a bee that has been under my saddle since I began wrestling. I thought, ‘we are not independent contractors – we can’t work for another promotion on Wednesday and work for you on Friday. It don’t work that way. How are we independent contractors?’” Ventura told Austin during the 2016 podcast.
Hulk Hogan Told Vince McMahon About Jesse Ventura's Union Plans
Shortly before WrestleMania 2, Ventura thought the timing was right to get a union started. He had a meeting in the WWE locker room and let all the boys know why professional wrestling needed a union. He said that they should tell the media that they wouldn’t work until the Federal Government came in and let them unionize. He added that they could get the Crockett roster involved too. Refuse to work, and the promoters wouldn't have a choice. They’d have to acquiesce to the demands of the wrestlers and allow a union. A day or so after this McMahon called him and threatened to fire him if he ever tried to rally the boys again. Years later, when The Body sued Vince, during deposition discovery, he had his lawyers find out who ratted him out. Vince immediately said Hogan told him about it.
While Jesse Ventura certainly wouldn’t have shied away from the fight, he became a big player in Hollywood. That meant he would get his Screen Actor’s Guild membership and join that union. He now had his retirement fund and healthcare. He even let Vince know as much by telling him, “If the boys are too stupid to fight for their rights, I have my union now.”
