Severance pay experts

[secondbase]

ok gang

bad deal , here
after 11 years of building a radiology dept up and managing it, my wife has been a victim of downsizing and has been laid off. Truly a bum and wrong deal.

Anyway they gave her a decent severance package..she did not sign anything..

it pays her every other week, just like she is still employed there.

BUT, on the schedule it says that she is to notify them when she gets a new position so payment can stop.

I have heard that severance pay is yours no matter if you find another job or not.

Plus what if, and this is most likely her case, she finds a new job that does not pay what her old one did ..Why would she take it ? as she would still be getting more severance than the new job.

I can't seem to find for sure answers

thanks

[tw burke]

its usually a payment, say like 3 months never heard of keep paying

[TheLink]

how long does the severance pay last? Usually companies pay the severance and the trade off is you won't attempt to file any suit against them. most of my experience is with big corporations but know small companies do things a lot different.

legally they aren't required to pay severance so they can work it however they see fit.

if I was in her shoes I would just state those concerns to the company see if the two parties can find a happy medium.

[revnecro1273]

always thought severance was a lump sum thing

[TheLink]

not always. a lot of companies give you x weeks and treat you just like an employee paying you every pay period until it expires.

[justdonating]

Only companies that fall under the WARN Act and meet certain criteria are required to pay severance. In most cases signing the severance agreement absolves the company against future claims. Typically companies won't start paying severance until the signed agreement is returned. As far as the payout, it can be lump sum, weekly, or biweekly, whichever the company chooses. Some chose to pay it out over time to avoid the lump sum outlay. Having been on both sides of layoffs, I've never seen a company require notification if you take another job. That being said, it could still happen, but typically most places don't care. Another question to ask during the severance period is do benefits continue while still on the payroll.

Sorry about the bad news for your wife and hope this info is helpful.

[secondbase]

Originally Posted by TheLink

not always. a lot of companies give you x weeks and treat you just like an employee paying you every pay period until it expires.

this is exactly how they are doing it

I wish it would be a lump sum .. that way she would be clear and free to find something

[secondbase]

Originally Posted by justdonating

Only companies that fall under the WARN Act and meet certain criteria are required to pay severance. In most cases signing the severance agreement absolves the company against future claims. Typically companies won't start paying severance until the signed agreement is returned. As far as the payout, it can be lump sum, weekly, or biweekly, whichever the company chooses. Some chose to pay it out over time to avoid the lump sum outlay. Having been on both sides of layoffs, I've never seen a company require notification if you take another job. That being said, it could still happen, but typically most places don't care. Another question to ask during the severance period is do benefits continue while still on the payroll.

Sorry about the bad news for your wife and hope this info is helpful.

thanks.. it is for sure a tough one... it was not a 6 figure job, but pretty close.
benefits do end too.

they did not have her sign anything though.

she got 20 weeks

[justdonating]

Originally Posted by secondbase

thanks.. it is for sure a tough one... it was not a 6 figure job, but pretty close.
benefits do end too.

they did not have her sign anything though.

she got 20 weeks

I'm no legal expert, but without a signature agreeing to notify, I wouldn't tell them jack if she got a new job before the severance ran out. Please consult someone with more legal background than me, but I don't think they can require notification and call it severance. Also, please check the laws in your state. When I lived in PA, severance wasn't counted as normal income. People laid off were able to claim unemployment from day one, state law didn't require them to wait until the severance period ended.

[TheLink]

that is pretty good severance as most companies offer 1 week for each yr of service. That might be why they elect to have the payments stop. I am guessing her benefits go through the whole time of the severance as well?

[TheLink]

Originally Posted by justdonating

I'm no legal expert, but without a signature agreeing to notify, I wouldn't tell them jack if she got a new job before the severance ran out. Please consult someone with more legal background than me, but I don't think they can require notification and call it severance. Also, please check the laws in your state. When I lived in PA, severance wasn't counted as normal income. People laid off were able to claim unemployment from day one, state law didn't require them to wait until the severance period ended.

i think what he is getting at is unless she signs she gets no severance. so they will have a signed document.