Comments on: How to Negotiate A Severance Package

By: joanne buse

joanne buse — Wed, 18 May 2011 16:47:24 +0000

Iam in a situation where i was on longterm disability and my insurance cuts me off then,”all of a sudden i didn`t meet the definition of disability” so i sued was awarded
$170000.00 now i am still disabled my employer refuses to terminate me,if they do they have to pay severance if i resign they don`t have to pay severance i have been off work for 4 years trying to get my rrsp`s released from this insurance company to transfer to another
registered product(so i don`t get taxed)and my insurance company won`t release this until my employer terminates me so frustrating especiallly not being well!

By: Robert

Robert — Thu, 08 Jul 2010 21:33:25 +0000

not mentioned above; taking as weekly/monthly pieces far better than lump sum, as IRS/SS table will hit you up more on later payout

By: Betty

Betty — Tue, 18 May 2010 17:38:14 +0000

Karen: I had the same thing happen to me. I was offered 6 months severance package but they wrote it up like twenty four weeks which is not 6 months! So I advised the hr guy that it is 52 weeks in a year divide that by 2 and you get twenty six weeks not twenty four. You must insist on the logic or else you will get played. They hope you don’t catch them on this. Imagine how many people don’t look this over and find out that they do not have the accurate data. I also made sure that I put my base salary $ amount in the acutal general release so there was no dispute on that either.
Best of luck.
Betty

By: Karen

Karen — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 11:19:36 +0000

I just received a severance pkg and my question is. I was told my severance would be equal to 3 months salary when I was presented with my pkg they figured the salary on 12 weeks which by calculations is less then what I would receive if they actually paid me out for 3 months – when I think of 3 months pay I take my annual divided by 3 and get a figure but when you actually take 12 weeks pay that is less. I am to receive a lump sum not salary continuation which I would get the 12 weeks vs. 3 months.
THank you.
Karen

By: CJ

CJ — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 20:35:37 +0000

Job was eliminated due to an imminent domain buyout from the Federal Government for a courthouse expansion in my city, I was there for 16 years and despite many verbal promises from my employer, in the end they disappeared and would no longer speak to the managers of their very successful business. They had promised us a significant severance from the monies from the Feds for the buyout, but alas, they turned out to be liars and cheats! What can be done in this situation? Anyone been in a similar one? Please help!!!

By: elminio soto

elminio soto — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 17:44:17 +0000

this is what it says word for word may be this will help.you will severance for 12 weeks the severance period in equal installments based on annual rate of xxxxxx,minus legally required federal and state payroll deductions.

By: Jim

Jim — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 17:35:39 +0000

It’s unclear based on your explanation what you should get, I would ask your employer.

By: elminio soto

elminio soto — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 17:33:18 +0000

hey can anyone answer this question.I just received a severance package it says that i will receive it for 12 weeks in equal installments based on my annual salary.does this mean i will get 12 regular checks or i will get my salary split in to 12 payments.

By: wendy

wendy — Mon, 23 Feb 2009 22:10:28 +0000

Reading your reply has given me the strength I need to follow in your footsteps. I just hope My case turns out as well as yours. Thanks, Wendy

By: Christine

Christine — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 22:11:04 +0000

It was only after I hired an employment lawyer that I was able to receive the severance I was offered. My non-profit withdrew the package on the day the paperwork was to be signed. I had negotiated with my attorney an up-front reasonable rate and an agreement to inform me when my bill hit $1,000. I think it was the best thing I did. It definitely took things up a notch, gave the company a scare and allowed me to receive the package that the company never would have paid. The lawyer was excellent and asked an important question – did I want him to represent me or guide me. Removing myself from the peeing contest that my boss insisted on conducting made my life a bit easier. Even still, it took two months, but I shouldn’t complain – I received it! Vengeance is sweet.

By: thomas

thomas — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:09:54 +0000

If you get axed and have a noncompete, I wouldn’t worry about it unless you are some executive. I seriously doubt a company that is laying people off will want to pursue legal action.

bookmarking for future reference.

By: Dennis S

Dennis S — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 20:19:40 +0000

My understanding is the notice period is governed at the state level and here in New York the notice period has been increased to 90 days!

By: JP Hindin

JP Hindin — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:38:00 +0000

Hey;

I was under the impression that a non-compete clause was, by and large, an unenforceable entity. The general gist is that a company cannot stop you from making a living, and if you are in a specialised area then that is even more applicable. Effectively you would be barred from working in your own industry, and earning a potentially comparable wage to your last employment, instead you’d be stuck with working at a Staples for the next six months because of said clause. And that is “not fair”, if you’ll forgive the schoolyard term.

As much as I try to avoid using Wikipedia as a source-of-all-answers, the following somewhat backs ups what I’d heard:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-compete_clause

For what it’s worth;

– JP

By: SmartSecurityPeople

SmartSecurityPeople — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:06:36 +0000

Hopefully I never had to be in this type of situation. However, I agree that you need to look at all the benefits and not just your salary when you are at the negotiating table (assuming that you have one). If you are let go because of a poor work ethic or lackluster performance, then you may be lucky to get anything at all…