Employers sometimes offer a “severance” or “termination package” to an employee when they terminate the employment relationship.
Unfortunately, many employees are uninformed about the dismissal process and have misconceptions about their entitlements. This causes them to accept a sub-par severance package.
To maximize your severance package, take care to avoid the following pitfalls.
Do not accept the employer’s initial severance package and do not sign any related paperwork such as a “Release.” At the time of termination, most employers offer less than the actual value of the dismissal because they know many employees will immediately accept it and the employer will save money.
A severance package is usually negotiable. If you sign a Release you are entering into an agreement that eliminates your right to seek additional compensation.
Do not rely on the employer for advice about the severance package and treat information provided by an employer with a healthy dose of skepticism. Remember that management works for the employer and represents their interests.
It is common for the employer to frame the severance package in a misleading manner. For example, the employer may say the severance package “exceeds” statutory entitlements or that it provides more than required under the employment contract.
Do not make a hasty decision to accept a severance package based on feelings of urgency about your...
News Corp Australia uses software that manages crawler bot traffic on our websites. If you receive this message and are not a crawler bot (and are just a reader or subscriber), please try these ste...