Stephen Hasner | Personal Injury | June 9, 2022
A severance agreement lawyer will be able to review your severance offer to ensure it meets Georgia standards and protects your rights. Negotiating a severance involves much more than just asking for the highest amount of compensation and includes making certain that your termination or resignation from your company hasn’t run afoul of labor laws which may entitle you to additional compensation. A severance attorney in Savannah, GA, can help you protect your rights.
What is a Severance Package?
A severance package is an agreement between you and your employer that discusses the terms of your separation from employment. In the agreement, you waive your rights to bring any legal claims against your employer, and they agree to pay you a certain amount of money.
It sounds like a good deal until you consider all that your employer may owe you. This amount is often substantially more than what they offer in your severance package.
A Severance Plan of Action
There is no Georgia law requiring your employer to offer or provide you a severance upon separation. Some companies make it a practice to offer severance, provided that you sign a release of claims. A release of claims waives your right to sue your employer for any wrongdoing, including discrimination or wrongful termination.
That’s why a severance lawyer may be able to help you ensure that you don’t have any other claims against your employer worth pursuing.
Here’s what you should expect from your legal counsel:
- A full review of your severance agreement, explaining everything to you to make sure you understand the terms of your severance and the implications
- A discussion about your employment situation and any additional claims you may have against your employer
- Aggressive negotiation with your employer to help you get a fair severance package
Using a severance negotiation lawyer in Savannah can give you leverage. Many companies violate overtime laws, sometimes intentionally and sometimes innocently. Either way, you’re entitled to your overtime pay and additional compensation if your employer has violated your rights. The same is true if your employer engaged in gender discrimination, race discrimination, religious discrimination, or retaliated against you after filing a workers’ compensation claim.
Employers usually want to resolve these issues in a timely manner and with as little expense as possible. That may be why the company was offering you a severance package to begin with, especially if it’s not normal practice for them. In these cases, your severance negotiation attorney can alert your employer to the validity of your employment claims, which may lead them to reconsider their severance offer and come back with a substantially higher severance.
What Should Be in Your Severance Package
When you’re leaving a job, it’s an emotional time, and you may not be thinking clearly. You may want to get out of the situation as quickly as possible and look to sign your severance package and move on.
However, we urge you to work through the agreement slowly and methodically. Best of all, work with a lawyer who can ensure your rights are protected.
Look for a payments section. Many employers build in a payment schedule for your severance. If your severance package is large, those payments may extend for months or even years. Negotiating a quick lump sum payment works best for most people.
You want to ensure that you have outplacement services. Whether your company works to help you find your next job or they pay a staffing agency to assist you, make sure this benefit is included in any severance package.
Finally, consider your other potential payments from your company. Do you have time off built up, bonuses coming your way, or any other payments that you might miss out on? You may still be entitled to these payments, so negotiating them into your severance package is key.
Speak with a Savannah Severance Negotiation Lawyer Who Can Protect Your Rights
While you may just want to move on, making sure you get a fair severance package is key to your future financial wellbeing. It’s also important to ensure you have considered any employment claims you may have against your employer for violations of labor laws. Taking a severance package may waive those rights, so it’s a good idea to seek legal advice and make sure you’re not leaving money on the table.
Contact Hasner today to schedule your free consultation and make sure your rights are protected by partnering with an experienced and aggressive Savannah severance negotiation lawyer.
Contact the Savannah Personal Injury Lawyers at Hasner Law, P.C. For Help
For more information, please contact the Savannah personal injury law firm of Hasner Law P.C. at our nearest location to schedule a free consultation today.
We serve in Fulton County, Chatham County, and its surrounding areas:
Hasner Law PC – Atlanta Law Office
2839 Paces Ferry Rd SE #1050
Atlanta, GA 30339
(678) 888-4878
Hasner Law PC – Savannah Law Office
221 W York St
Savannah, GA 31401
(912) 234-2334
