I was recently laid off from a company I served for over 25 years.

35 Comments

1. AnonymousNovember 19,2024 at 4:30PM UTC

   First off receiving severance is not a basis for denying unemployment. Secondly, they have now breached their agreement so you can legally challenge their agreement and file against them in a lawsuit. I would meet with an attorney to discuss your options. It's important to understand your rights.

   Also, no financial situation would prevent them from paying you unless they are bankrupt.

2. Kathy MasonNovember 21,2024 at 4:33PM UTC

   In some states you can be denied unemployment if you receive severance, but you can appeal. It helps if it is lump sum and not a weekly payout.

3. AnonymousNovember 23,2024 at 8:50PM UTC

   At an old company we had sick time and vacation time separate. She worked with the company for 25 years and not one time did she call in sick. She made all appointments during her days or vacation days. It was just how she was. If I am remembering correctly, she had approximately 4 months of sick time accrued. You were supposed to get paid for sick time if you left the company.

   We got bought out. They bought out what vacation she had however the "New Company" didn't pay out sick time so they were not going to pay her.

   They had a celebration party for her after they forced her to retire. They made sure to talk about how she never called in sick, yadda yadda yadda. They gave her a glass trophy and a check for $500. We were all really really upset for her.

   She fooled them and wasn't quite the sweet passive little old lady they thought she was. She left the check and the trophy on her desk on the last day. She didn't sign anything and lawyered up. They wound up having to pay her all her sick time, 4 x years worked in severance (100 weeks of pay) plus her yearly salary for 3 years since by retiring she would have to take social security early and not get the full amount and she didn't want to do that.

   If only they did the right thing to begin with.

   Good luck - I hope you lawyer up and bust their Azz...

4. BarbaraNovember 19,2024 at 4:54PM UTC

   Denied the claim??! On what grounds? Definitely appeal and love a complaint with the labor board. Get a lawyer asap to write a letter. Wow.

5. maria roseNovember 20,2024 at 7:18PM UTC

   Yes, definitely appeal the unemployment denial, most companies that deny unemployment are doing it because they ( their fault) don’t have unemployment insurance—a must in today’s world economy—by appealing the unemployment it will expose that they have a history of doing this—laying you off with a severance package exactly the same as firing someone, as you are still entitled to unemployment. They might be claiming ( re-read the paperwork you signed to receive the severance to check for any clauses that state that you can’t claim unemployment benefits until a certain time period has passed provided that you received the sum amount). But that only applies to a very short window of time. Your unemployment benefits are based on your work history which if you were receiving a paycheck that has income reported to both your state and federal governments tax department is public record. The denial from the employer is just their way of getting out of paying their share of unemployment taxes. Consulting with a labor attorney would be advisable too, especially since they are holding back the severance ( whatever their reasons). You might have to file a claim against them especially if they might be trying to get out of paying anything by filing bankruptcy—which really doesn’t get them off the hook but only delays the eventual.

6. AnonymousNovember 20,2024 at 3:34PM UTC

   I'm sorry to hear. Unemployment varies per state. Contact your local Bar Association to search for a lawyer with expertise in employment law (or if you know a lawyer).

   Then do what you can to either you yourself or via a lawyer (depends on what you'd want to pay) - pursue what is yours 1. for unemployment and 2. payments

   Good luck!

7. AnonymousNovember 20,2024 at 5:16PM UTC

   Contact the EEOC and file a complaint & consult with a lawyer ASAP (consults are free 98% of the time). They may be going under and you're not going to get anything. Scumbags denying your unemployment! Please let us know what happens.

8. AnonymousNovember 21,2024 at 1:47PM UTC

   Usually people here are a little too quick to advise lawyering up but not in this case. Or at the very least going to your state’s

   department of labor.

9. GirlBossanova934974November 21,2024 at 2:48PM UTC

   First off, you were entitled BY LAW to have 21 days to review the severance agreement. Second, if you did sign the agreement, that is a legal binding contract. Go see a lawyer ASAP. Denial of Unemployment? This tells me that the company is just plain making up stuff. Contact your State Labor Office and appeal immediately. The State will contact the employer and will tell them that the gig is up and they cannot deny the claim. The money gets paid out of the State Unemployment Fund. The company is trying to avoid future increases in their unemployment insurance which tells me that this outfit is playing games and making up stuff.

10. AnonymousNovember 21,2024 at 5:47PM UTC

    Contact the EEOC and file a wage claim. They will owe you interest as well. Your state may have an attorney referral service where you can get a cheap consult from a lawyer to advise you of your rights in this specific situation. As a person of a certain age you have more time to sign off on the severance because of this. If they have specifically called out the age thing and not terminated others during this time you could have a claim for that as well. As for UI benefits ask for them to re-review this because you probably told them you are being given severance and that would hold up your eligibility for benefits because you would still have funds coming in from the former employer. Instead share the last date worked/paid stub and let them know the employer has not paid you and will not pay after that date. Good luck, yes this sucks but you will survive!

11. AyianNovember 22,2024 at 1:11PM UTC

    Keep disputing the employers response to the Workforce office. Laid off is a shoe-in for unemployment benefits, which may be delayed or denied based on the severance package. Furthermore, of the company is not honoring their financial obligation to you, the contract may be void. Contact an employment attorney.

12. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 1:34PM UTC

    Talk with a lawyer. For any separation agreement they were supposed to give you time to discuss it with your lawyer, by holding your payments, they were coercing you into signing that because of need. Also, search “new severance agreement law” from Feb 21, 2023. An employer cannot ask you to give away your rights because that violates the National Labor Relations Act. I see companies keep doing it, but is illegal. Find a lawyer oriented in labor law and call EEOC file your case anyway, because while you look for help the time you have to file is counting.

13. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 2:53PM UTC

    i'm guessing she signed, because they would not have started severance payments without her signature . That's how it goes. and you are correct, there are new laws regarding signing "right to sue" documents, but I've also been told that those legal changes are not effective in every circumstance (I work in healthcare). EEOC is great to talk with, but they are SO BUSY. I had a case with them, it took 9 months, and they did nothiig but give me a letter to sue the employer on my own time/cost. Yikes.

14. JasonNovember 22,2024 at 2:06PM UTC

    Hi. I’m so sorry to hear about your situation. I have an amazing employment attorney who I cannot recommend highly enough. If it’s permitted and you’re interested, I’d be happy to share her information.

15. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 2:11PM UTC

    I think you should see an attorney.

16. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 2:49PM UTC

    oh my. what a mess. I am 63; at age 57, I lost my full time position (no fault) after many years and also had to sign a disparagement document. (the EEOC told me that age discrimination cases are OFTEN very hard to prove)-so yeah, I've been there/done that. you cannot get unemployment until your accrued vacation time (paid out) and severance are paid out. In my state, unemployment has a "cap", and you won't get a penny if your PTO and severance exceed that cap by a red cent. Now in your case, you probably submitted some sort of paperwork to unemployment which showed severance payments, up until the last 4 weeks. You might have hit your state's annual "cap"- (we don't know how much you've received so far, but you do). As far as the company not making you those severance payments-- my situation was similar; my former employer was going bankrupt at the time. My attorney warned me to take a "lump sum" severance because, in his words, "if they go bankrupt, you'll get nothing". I did get a modest one-time check. So....talk with an employment specialist attorney STAT, but since HR isn't answering you....there's trouble for sure and you may never get your money. Very shady, and I am very sorry.

17. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 2:57PM UTC

    This has me seething on your behalf. I’ll be 60 in a few days. I would nail these jacka**es right to the wall.

18. Alley KeosheyanNovember 22,2024 at 3:23PM UTC

    I just turned 60 a month ago. OP should find a junkyard dog of an employment lawyer and sue the cr@p out of these people.

19. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 3:27PM UTC

    This sounds like your former employer may be preparing to file a Bankruptcy. I would seek legal counsel so they can look into this on your behalf.

20. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 6:09PM UTC

    Go ahead and file to sue them because they've reneged on their side of the deal. They've broken the stipulations they set out which makes all their rules null and void.

21. Pea WriteNovember 22,2024 at 6:15PM UTC

    I would contact an employment attorney. It’s not your problem they can’t pay their bills.

22. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 6:32PM UTC

    I can't speak to what they owe you, but I can say that unemployment is really confusing and in my experience, if you can call or go to an unemployment office, they're generally willing to answer questions and give advice. I would start there, and if you can get access to an employment attorney, that's definitely a good idea!

23. AnonymousNovember 23,2024 at 3:27PM UTC

    I have only had to do unemployment once, and the unemployment office folks were so kind and adept at explaining the process. They were very proactive at getting things done. They often also offer different workshops for various things.

    I think the company that let you go really took advantage of you. They broke their agreement and I do think they did some really unconscionable things. I don't know how much progress you will make, but I would definitely consult an employment attorney.

24. AnonymousNovember 22,2024 at 8:54PM UTC

    You made a mistake by signing anything, especially related to severance. You should have immediately consulted a reputable empoyment lawyer - as you are likely entitled to around two years of pay.

25. AnonymousNovember 23,2024 at 2:11AM UTC

    I would go to an employment lawyer it seems like they broke your agreement when they refused to pay your severance speak to a lawyer see what you can do

26. Vivian Chern ShnaidmanNovember 23,2024 at 1:26PM UTC

    I’m so sorry this happened to you and I agree that you should consult an employment lawyer as they have broken the agreement. I just want to mention in case this happens to anyone else to speak with a lawyer BEFORE signing the agreement. Also they just said you can’t sue for age discrimination - that’s illegal. A good employment lawyer might help you with your retirement. Good luck.

27. AnonymousNovember 23,2024 at 1:31PM UTC

    From my understanding with severance aren’t they suppose to give you a lump sum payment? Also, as far as know with unemployment your payments won’t start until your severance weeks are complete. So for example if you have 4 weeks of severance, you will not receive unemployment until after that 4 week period and you will need to file a new claim.

28. Teri WankatNovember 27,2024 at 9:34PM UTC

    This is not true, depends what state you are in. Go back to unemployment with your separation letter which I assume states you were laid off and not let go for cause.

    File complaint against them with the EEOC, and just an FYI, they cannot really prevent you from suing for age discrimination by signing that agreement. Same thing happened to me where they forced me to sign in order to get my severance then I found out one week too late that I could have still filed complaint against them.

    1. File age discrimination against them if more than you were laid off and you all are 40+
    2. Go back to unemployment with separation letter info
    3. Go to the company and get your severence
29. AnonymousNovember 23,2024 at 3:44PM UTC

    ALWAYS take any severance as a lump sum!!!!

    Your options are:

    (a) Hire a lawyer, which will be expensive, will not be able to guarantee favourable outcomes, and if they get any money, it will take at least 30%.

    (b) Hope your ex-employer doesn't file for bankruptcy (Obviously, their financial situation is dire) since if they do, you will not see a dime in the balance of your severance and "maybe" you'll get the money they owe you someday.

    (You can't squeeze water from a stone.)

    (c) Write off ever seeing the balance of your severance and move on.

30. AnonymousNovember 23,2024 at 4:40PM UTC

    If they stopped paying you can now sue. Find a lawyer who will take part of the settlement, so you don't have to put any money up front. It may take a while but you could be pleasantly surprised with the outcome.

31. AnonymousNovember 23,2024 at 9:59PM UTC

    I am sorry to hear about your situation. It seems that the company did not intend to pay your severance package This is why you were asked to sign off to ot sue for age discrimination.

    I would try to file a lawsuit against the company.

32. TiffenyNovember 23,2024 at 10:51PM UTC

    Get an attorney. Contact dept of labor. File a compliant. ASAP.

33. Liz MilneNovember 24,2024 at 1:20AM UTC

    Tell them if they don't resume payments, you're going to proceed with the age discrimination suit. They clearly admit it's why they offered you severance: you don't give people money for nothing!

34. AnonymousNovember 25,2024 at 9:25PM UTC

    Seek Legal council immediately. There is definitely major wrongdoing on their part. They broke their contract when they could not pay you severance. Do not wait another minute!

35. AnonymousDecember 2,2024 at 4:11PM UTC

    I'm really sorry to hear about the difficulties you're facing after such a long tenure with the company. It sounds like you're navigating a complex and frustrating situation.

    1. Severance and Legal Agreements:

    You mentioned signing an agreement that waived your ability to sue for age discrimination. It's important to understand that such agreements are common in severance packages but may be negotiable. If you believe that age discrimination was a factor in your layoff, it might be worth consulting an employment attorney to see if there are any legal options, especially if you haven’t received payments as agreed.

    2. Unpaid Severance Payments:

    If the company is delaying payments due to financial issues, you still have rights to your severance. You may want to check your severance agreement to see if there are any clauses regarding delays or non-payment in the event of financial difficulty.

    If the delay becomes a hardship, consider filing a complaint with the Department of Labor or seeking legal advice on how to enforce your severance agreement.

    3. Unemployment Claim Denial:

    It can be frustrating to have your unemployment claim denied, but it’s not uncommon in some circumstances. Typically, unemployment is denied when the individual voluntarily leaves their job or is fired for cause.

    If your claim was denied, you should have received a written explanation. You can appeal the decision, and depending on your state, there is usually a process for this. It may be helpful to contact your state’s unemployment office for guidance on how to proceed with the appeal.

    4. What to Do Next:

    Consult an Attorney: If you feel that your age discrimination claim has merit, consulting with an employment lawyer could help clarify your options regarding both the severance delay and your potential discrimination case.

    Contact the Department of Labor: For unpaid severance or other compensation, you may have recourse through the Department of Labor or your state's labor office, especially if the company is failing to meet its obligations.

    Document Everything: Keep a record of all communications with your former employer, including requests for payment and unemployment claims. This documentation could be important if you pursue legal action.

    It’s understandable to be upset and uncertain during this time, especially after such a long commitment to the company. While it can feel overwhelming, there are steps you can take to protect your rights and potentially resolve these issues.