If you are faced with a layoff, you may be worried about your capability to meet your fiscal obligations, and the help offered by your severance package. In many instances, these packages are a single financial settlement provided by the company, and may be a standard payout for each terminated employee, or a personalized number based on a formula planned for the function of a large-scale cutback. What many men and women don’t know is that your preliminary offer of severance from a business may be open to discussions. This negotiation is best performed with the assistance of a competent employment law firm. The best first move you can make is to be well informed and learn the facts about the process.
There is no statute requiring companies to provide a severance package to workers; however, many companies do offer plans to staff members who are let go as a result of downsizing, lay-offs, or under certain individual situations. These offers are often offered as consideration in an indemnity agreement upon separation from the business. Because a contract must have legal consideration in order to be regarded enforceable, the business may have an employee sign a contract not to sue or stigmatize the corporation as a result of the terminating action.
The first thing you should do when acquiring a severance package from your provider is to have an uninvolved third party examine the details and documents of the offer. A competent negotiator can tell you about trends in compensation packages and severance packages by location and industry, and ensure you are obtaining a fair deal. In many cases, an employment attorney will be able to advise you on your rights and responsibilities under the agreement, and in some cases negotiate for a more reasonable compensation package in return for indemnity.
Sometimes, even if no severance is provided, a severance package may still be worked out in cases where the employee seeks out a settlement as remuneration for having been terminated. While it is up to you to seek out compensation, and it may or may not be successful, it is a great strategic move to try and negotiate the terms of your termination proactively. Depending on the unique circumstances of your case, an attorney may be able to make a settlement arrangement with the corporation on your behalf.
Offers of severance are very seldom set in stone by a company. Often the number is derived from talks and calculations with the company’s in-house legal team, who will have authority and statistics for key severance decisions. There are occasions when the company agent will try to suggest that the package is only on the table for a short period of time, or that the sum offered represents the final amount available to the staff as settlement for the termination of work, but this is practically never the case. Behavior like this is meant to combat any objection to the termination or the offer, and avoid negotiations at a time when the company is trying to conserve cash through terminations.
When you obtain a severance package, do not take what is offered outright; you may not only leave extra money on the table that you will most likely need while moving to new job opportunities, you may also find yourself tied to contract clauses that are not in your best interest if you sign the agreement prior to having it evaluated by a skilled lawyer who is not connected with the company.