Few pieces of news are more disturbing than the news that your job is ending or your employer is terminating your employment. Your employer insists that they are not firing you, but the consequences are the same in that, no matter the reason, you are still jobless. Employers know that the unexpected loss of a job is disruptive to employees, so when the employer lays off employees who have consistently done their jobs in good standing, it often offers them a severance package, where it continues to pay them their salary for several months after their last day of work.
A severance package, no matter how generous, is cold comfort if you had been under the impression that your job was permanent and you could continue working there until you chose to retire. If your job is ending because of major changes in the economy or world events, there is little you can do to change that; all you can do is do your best to think clearly and plan your next move. The severance lawyers at HKM Employment Attorneys in Hunstville can help you negotiate an adequate severance package.
A Separation Agreement is End of Service Bonus with Strings Attached
Conventional wisdom holds that no one wants to hire you unless you already have a job, and therefore, you should not quit your current job until you have signed a contract with a new employer. Of course, in the age of quiet quitting and the Great Resignation, those of us who are content with our jobs are not hubristic enough to go job hopping and fire our employers before they fire us.
If you know that your employment contract has an expiration date and is not renewable, it only makes sense that you will start applying for new jobs before the end of the contract period. Of course, new jobs are hard to find even under ideal circumstances, so your employer might give you an end-of-service bonus as a provision of your contract. It may cover several months’ salary, and it might cover relocation expenses if you relocated for your job, especially if you maintained ties to the place you used to live before you started your current job.
Severance pay is similar to an end-of-service bonus except that you get it when your job ends sooner than you were expecting and, presumably, sooner than your employer expected when they hired you. Most severance packages include enough money to cover several months of your salary; some severance packages refer to this as paid leave.
They also continue to cover your health insurance for several months. The only catch is that, as a prerequisite for getting a severance package, you must sign a separation agreement. Pursuant to the separation agreement, the employer promises to pay you the severance pay and continue to provide health insurance coverage for you and the family members covered under your policy. Meanwhile, you promise not to sue your employer for wrongful termination of employment, discrimination, or retaliation.
How Much Severance is Enough?
You do not get your severance pay until you sign the separation agreement your employer is offering you in much the same way as you do not get any money from your insurance company for a car accident claim until after you sign the settlement offer letter. Personal injury lawyers always warn you not to sign the settlement offer letter until you are sure that the money that the insurance company is offering you is enough to pay for your vehicle repairs and other accident-related financial losses.
Likewise, you should not sign a separation agreement until you are sure that the severance pay is sufficient or that it is appropriate to sign the separation agreement at all.
How much severance pay is enough is a context-dependent question as to whether you should sign the separation agreement and what to do instead if you decide not to sign. Most employees who receive offers of severance pay eventually sign the separation agreement to receive their severance packages. The Huntsville employment lawyers at HKM Employment Attorneys LLP can help you weigh your options about separation agreements and negotiate for a severance package that gives you enough money and other benefits to get through at least the next few months.
Never Too Soon to Discuss Severance Pay With Employment Lawyer
If you find out that you job is being eliminated, it is natural to panic and sign the separation agreement so there is no gap between your last paycheck and your first installment of severance pay. Your employer should let you review the agreement outside of work before you decide to sign. Ideally, you should bring the agreement to a lawyer to review it thoroughly and discuss the circumstances of the termination of your employment. If the employer gives you a short deadline to sign the separation agreement, such as only one business day, this is a red flag. If you know that the next round of layoffs is coming, it is a good idea to start your discussions with an employment lawyer before you even receive a copy of the separation agreement.
Is Your Severance Package a Trojan Horse?
It is possible that the separation agreement, even if it comes with a generous severance package, is a front for something more insidious. Remember that a separation agreement entails a promise not to sue your former employer for wrongful termination of employment. Therefore, you should not sign the agreement unless you are sure that your employer is not terminating your employment for discriminatory or retaliatory reasons. If the corporate restructuring or the round of layoffs where you are one of only a few workers being laid off comes soon after you complained about discrimination or engaged in another legally protected activity, you are right to be suspicious, and you are right to talk to an employment lawyer.
Contact HKM Employment Attorneys About Severance Pay
The Huntsville employment lawyers at HKM Employment Attorneys, LL,P can give you advice about separation agreements and severance packages. Contact the employment lawyers at HKM Employment Attorneys, LLP, in Huntsville, Alabama, to set up a consultation.
