On April 15, 2020, World Wrestling Entertainment fired 28 wrestlers and a number of other employees to cut costs. The move was widely criticized at the time, and WWE went on to have record profits for the year.
On April 15, 2021, WWE again went on a firing binge, releasing nine wrestlers.
Although WWE maintains its wrestlers are independent contractors, the individuals fired by WWE often have stipulations preventing them from working for other wrestling companies for 90 days.
Matt Cardona, who wrestled in WWE under the name Zack Ryder, was one of the wrestlers fired on April 15, 2020. Now wrestling for Impact, Cardona used a twist on Stone Cold Steve Austin’s famous Austin 3:16 statement to reference WWE’s penchant for firing people on April 15.
This practically demands to be made into a t-shirt.