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If your NYC employer hands you a severance agreement and you ask (in a professional and non-angry) manner for changes to the agreement, do you risk losing everything? Or, does the mere fact that the employer presented the severance agreement mean that the agreement is on the table and therefore, up for discussion?

My husband, a journalist, was laid off from a major co. It was not for cause b/c they want to hire him back as a contract worker (lower pay and no benefits). Is that legal? There are intellectual property issues he needs to negotiate before he signs his severance agreement but the company says it never negotiates severance. Help.

Michael Bloomberg's severance package -- in th 70s -- was $10 MILLION.

Don't lie by omission.

I was told, when I was let go [from a vary large corporate behemoth,] that they chose to let me go instead of the male employee who was at my same level, because I was single with no kids to support where as the male employee had a wife and family to support.

They also told me I was "more likely to land on [my] feet," whereas he was less likely to be able to easily find employment elsewhere!

I chose not to fight these [seemingly unreasonable] statements and accepted the somewhat generous severance agreement, rather than contest this action.
However, I often wonder if this was actually a case of discrimination that I could have fought?

For the record, yes I have landed on my feet and I have been successfully self employed since leaving that job.

Thanks

Are there any support groups in the area for people who were recently downsized to discuss this issue?

HEY!!! Administrative assistants know a lot of secrets!!!Some severance is based on confidentiality agreements!

I'm wondering if he can address the question of long term, but temporary employment. I am in this position for over 2 years and they say they offer no severance when the job ends.

This sounds all fine and good for very well structured corporate jobs but the reality that I found is that most jobs are "at will employment", and it's stated that you can be terminated at anytime and for any reason.

Also the company I used to work at is now using an "employment agency" of sorts that actually hires the employees and "leases" them to the facility I used to work at, another way they circumvent this; unfortuantely for me and several others.

DURESS = forcible restraint or restriction benefit..."If you don't sign this you won't get benefits." In other words, they have you by the naughty bits...for the moment.

MY girl friend was severed back in Nov. 2008 she was lucky to find a job through contacts at the company that she was leaving to get a job with a vendor of that said company. She was recently contacted by the old company that she owes them back some severance pay because she went to work for one of their vendor. Would thy have preferred her to be with out a job? Those she have to pay them back?

Honestly, how hard is it really to lay someone off with a little class and compassion? My friend, along with hundreds of others in his company, was laid off last summer. The company sent out secret memos to dozens of office managers who had no idea what was in them to be read aloud to their staff. So these managers are standing there reading and learning at the same time as their staff that they and everyone in hearing distance has just been let go. It got really ugly. Security had to be called in.

Is or should severence pay be directly related to performance grade? Can it be denied due to performance grade?

p.s. you have no RIGHT to severance.

How can you hold a threat to sue over an employer when you have an AT-WILL employment contract?
I thought that AT WILL meant they could fire you for anything...

The guest should explain that when the employer gives your money, you give something back - you sign something that says you will not sue, bad-mouth the employer, etc. People really don't realize that.

how do non-compete clauses play into all this??

In order to negotiate, I would have had to refuse to sign my severance contract with Merrill Lynch. Had ML not wanted to negotiate, they could have left me out in the cold with no severance whatsoever. Thus I could have found myself out by 54 weeks pay. An employment lawyer agreed with me that, while not likely, this was indeed a possibility.

This is not quite related, but, is there a legal way to make a former employee to sign up paperwork proving experience in order to apply for a license?

My employer's severence plan offers a certain number of weeks of pay based on service, but you must sign a release saying you won't sue them to get the money. Is that type of agreement binding?

What about arbitration? It is often biased toward the employer, so wouldn't it lower the power of severance.

Do you really believe an Administrative Assistant has the same bargaining power as a Senior Vice President or Department Chair? Let's get real here. I suspect your tips are for a sliver of the population from a very specific socio-economic class and education level. 'Fess up!

Ok, I'm curious about this. If you've just been laid off, what exactly do you have to bargain with to get better (or any) severance pay? It's not like you can threaten to quit. Break down sobbing and hope they feel sorry for you? Pull a Fight Club and beat yourself up in the boss's office and promise not to sue if they give you a few extra weeks' pay?