I’m being terminated and only paid 3 months of severance. How can I negotiate my severance package?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
I’m being terminated and only paid 3 months of severance. How can I negotiate my severance package?
I work at a technology company in New York and have been employed for 2 years.
I’m being asked to sign termination paperwork that includes a lump sum severance
payment, worth around 14 weeks of pay. I don’t think this is sufficient given
that I’ll need to leave the US afterwards.
Should I get a lawyer to review the severance package? If I sued the company
would I have a chance?
Asked on July 18, 2019 under Employment Labor Law, New York
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 4 years ago | Contributor
Do you have a written employment conrtract for a definite or defined period of time (e.g. a one year, three year, etc.) contract which is still in effect (unexpired) which guaranteed you severance? If you did, you are entitled to whatever severance the contract gives you--no more and no less.
But without a contract, there is NO right to severance: U.S. law does not guaranty it. It is purely voluntary on the part of your employer; it being voluntary on their part, they can offer you however much they like (assuming they choose to offer you anything--they don't have to give you severance at all). Therefore, you have no grounds to sue them in the absence of a contract for more severance.
Bear in mind your severance is actually quite generous by U.S. standards: many employees, even senior ones or professionals, get nothing; and when companies do grant severance, usuallys it's on 1 or 2 weeks per year of service.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.