Severance

If you’re suddenly unemployed, the first thing you may think about is filing for unemployment benefits. The last thing you think about is having your benefits denied because you got a severance payment when you left your job. Does severance pay affect unemployment, and if so, can you get your benefits restored? Jackson Spencer Law [...]

So your previous employer went through a layoff / reduction in force, and now they’re paying you severance payments. Do those severance payments end when you find a new job? The short answer is: it depends on the terms of your severance agreement. Let’s break down the possible scenarios to help you plan your next [...]

If you’re curious about how long it might take to receive your severance pay, you’re not alone. Many people find themselves suddenly out of work and searching for a new job. You could be concerned about your immediate financial future and all the anxiety that is likely to come from very understandable fear, uncertainty and [...]

If you have been laid off, or you suspect layoffs are around the corner, it’s important to know that you can negotiate a better severance package at any point during your employment. Such a package can help sustain you while you look for another job. Whether you have been offered a severance package or simply [...]

In 2019, we wrote about 10 executives who negotiated 24 karat golden parachutes. Little did we know how much the world would change over the next two years. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe and the United States saw steep economic declines as many businesses were forced to shut down in response to [...]

If you are terminated and your employer hands you a severance agreement, you’ll want to know your rights before you sign anything. More often than not, severance agreements are drafted by an employer’s lawyer with provisions to protect the employer and not you, the employee. In fact, many of these agreements ask you to give [...]

Understanding a Severance Package Losing a job, especially when unexpected, is a nightmare for most employees. Worrying about finding another job, paying bills, and covering health insurance premiums between jobs stresses any employee who has been terminated or laid off. Fortunately, you can reduce these fears by educating yourself on severance pay basics long before the need arises. [...]

Two of the most common questions we are asked are “how do I improve my severance agreement?” and “how do I obtain severance?” While every situation is different and there is no simple answer, we have outlined below five of the steps we undertake in a severance negotiation. While you execute this plan, make sure [...]

Getting laid off from your job can be an emotionally distressing time for most people. The executives on this list, however, probably celebrated.

Employers are not required to offer severance payments to employees they lay off or terminate, unless there is a specific employment contract or company policy requiring the payments. Since most employees are “at will,” the employment relationship can be ended by the employer or the employee for any reason except an illegal reason. Why then [...]