6 current WWE stars who have been absent for more than 30 days and the reason why 

WWE has a stacked roster at present and given the recent issues that have presented themselves at WWE's Performance Center, it appears that COVID-19 has become a problem for the company as well.

Stephanie McMahon has noted that WWE has given all of its employees a choice when it comes to working through the pandemic and now they are working with a much smaller roster.

Whilst there are many stars who have been missing due to injury including Ember Moon, Xavier Woods, Jinder Mahal, and AOP, and Becky Lynch is on maternity leave, there are a few other stars who are missing for completely different reasons.

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#6. Charlotte Flair

Charlotte Flair won the NXT Women's Championship back at WrestleMania in April, but was written off WWE TV just a few short weeks later when she dropped the Championship to Io Shirai and was attacked by Nia Jax.

Flair's reported absence has allowed her to work on a number of projects outside of the company and to have some much-needed surgery. Reports suggest that Flair could be out of action until 2021, whilst others believe that if needed Flair could be recalled in time for Survivor Series.

Flair herself recently commented on her recent WWE hiatus and made it clear that she didn't expect to be gone for long.

“I’ll only be gone for a few weeks. They can still play things on the WWE Network but utilizing my social media will be most important while I’m gone.

“With WWE, there are so many things that I’m part of. I’m part of an organization called ‘Girl Up’ where I’m able to stream live from my social media—no one is going to miss me. They’re still going to feel like I’m there is basically what I’m saying. I’m gone but I’m not really gone.”

#5. The Forgotten Sons

The Forgotten Sons were only recently promoted to the SmackDown brand and had stepped into a feud with The New Day before the trio was removed from WWE TV a few weeks ago.

The trio hasn't competed in a match since Money in the Bank back in May, and according to a report from Fightful, this could be down to the heat on Jaxson Ryker following his recent social media activity. It appears that Cutler and Blake have been removed from TV as well.

Thankful for the @POTUS we have! God bless America. Built of freedom. Forgotten No More

— Jaxson Ryker (@JaxsonRykerWWE) June 1, 2020

Jaxson shared the above Tweet and then received a lot of backlash from his co-workers before reports suggested that WWE would have to react to the update, even though Ryker is still yet to remove the tweet.

The Forgotten Sons have since been replaced in their Tag Team Championship feud by Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura, who won the titles back at Extreme Rules when they challenged The New Day.

At present, there is no update on when Jaxson Ryder, Wesley Blake, and Steve Culter are expected to return to WWE TV.

#4. Elias

Elias was last seen on WWE TV when he was part of a hit and run outside of WWE's Performance Center ahead of SmackDown back in May.

The former 24/7 Champion suffered a torn pectoral muscle ahead of his match against AJ Styles which was the reason why he was part of the storyline between Jeff Hardy and Sheamus.

WWE needed a way to write Elias out of his Intercontinental Championship tournament match and this worked out in their favor.

The most recent reports regarding Elias' WWE status have his return at around WrestleMania next year. The Drifter required surgery for his torn muscle and his rehab could be a lengthy number of months.

WWE was able to write Elias out of the storylines he was part of, but this comes just months after the star suffered an ankle injury and was sidelined for two months. Elias's official prognosis following the injury was that he could be sidelined from the ring for 6-9 months which means that he could be back in time for the 2021 Royal Rumble.

#3. Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns hasn't been seen on WWE TV since March, which was when it was announced that the United States would be forced to take lockdown measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Reigns' recent struggles with Leukemia and the fact that his wife had recently given birth to twins meant that the former Universal Champion made the decision to remain at home and drop out of his scheduled WrestleMania match.

The Big Dog was set to challenge Goldberg for the Universal Championship at WrestleMania, but he was replaced by Braun Strowman after Reigns made it clear that he wouldn't be able to perform.

Reigns was expected to make his return as part of SummerSlam, since this was when WWE targeted the return of their audience. Given the company's recent COVID-19 issues, Reigns isn't expected to return in the near future and SummerSlam has recently been moved to WWE's Performance Center as well.

At present, there is no update on when Roman Reigns is expected to make his return to WWE TV.

#2. Sami Zayn

I am the Intercontinental Champion.Period.With the exception of Shinsuke, these men have no self-respect, and it says a lot about them that they were willing to participate in this tournament to begin with.Disappointed in all of them. https://t.co/PoLDrCINHe

— Sami Zayn (@SamiZayn) May 16, 2020

Sami Zayn defended his Intercontinental Championship against Daniel Bryan at WrestleMania, but merely a month later he was stripped of the Championship after he was unable to return to the company and defend the title.

Zayn underwent a dental procedure following this year's WrestleMania event before making the decision to stay home during the current pandemic, which left WWE with no choice but to strip Zayn of his Championship and unveil their plans for a tournament to crown a new Champion.

WWE has given its employees the option to stay home due to the pandemic and many have made the decision to remain at home. Sami Zayn has been active on social media despite not being part of current storylines and he recently congratulated Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura on their Tag Team Championship win in his absence.

Zayn seems to be waiting to make his return after the COVID-19 pandemic has been declared safe, which means that the former Champion could make his return to a WWE ring later this year.

#1. Otis

Otis was the shock winner of the 2020 Men's Money in the Bank ladder match back in May, but as of yet, he is yet to tease a cash-in of his briefcase.

Otis was last seen on SmackDown on June 13th and has since been AWOL. Dolph Ziggler ended their feud when he moved over to Monday Night RAW and has since stepped into the WWE Championship picture.

Otis hasn't stepped into a new feud since Ziggler moved over to Raw and whilst there has been no on-screen explanation for the absence of Mr. Money in the Bank, there was a hint from Dave Meltzer on The Wrestling Observer that Otis could have been taken off WWE TV as a precaution given the current pandemic sweeping the globe.

It's been over a month since Mr. Money in the Bank was seen on SmackDown and even though Braun Strowman is embroiled in a feud with Bray Wyatt, Otis should be teasing a cash-in. Hopefully, Otis is recovered and ready to return to WWE TV in time for SummerSlam next month.