"Legal Puppy" <nomail@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:QU9Wa.29956$BM.9692404@newssrv26.news.prodigy .com... Employer lays off employee due to financial reasons. Former Employer offers former employee, in writing, two months salary and two months insurance coverage, to be paid 8 days after employee signs Confidential Release Agreement. (Former employee promises not to sue, defame, libel, etc in exchange for severance) 15 days have passed since employee signed Confidential General Release was signed and no check has been received by former employee Former employer has not returned calls. What should be next course of action? Is former employee now obligated to live his/her obligations outlined in the Confidential General Release?

Contact your local "wage and hour division" for insight into recourse.
A "do not sue" clause should have sent up flags. Meaning that employer had
no intention of living up to his end.
File for unemployment compensation and advise the state the employer had you
sign this agreement.
They [the state] may not like that idea. But that would be their ultimate
decision.
File a suit in small claims court. This would force the employer to appear
in court.
Then he'd have to answer to a judge as to why he isn't paying.

Legal advice is best obtained by hiring an attorney, not in a newsgroup.

On Thu, 31 Jul 2003 11:58:04 -0500, "Richard" <anom@anom> wrote:
"Legal Puppy" <nomail@nospam.com> wrote in messagenews:QU9Wa.29956$BM.9692404@newssrv26.news. prodigy.com... Employer lays off employee due to financial reasons. Former Employer offers former employee, in writing, two months salary and two months insurance coverage, to be paid 8 days after employee signs Confidential Release Agreement. (Former employee promises not to sue, defame, libel, etc in exchange for severance) 15 days have passed since employee signed Confidential General Release was signed and no check has been received by former employee Former employer has not returned calls. What should be next course of action? Is former employee now obligated to live his/her obligations outlined in the Confidential General Release?Contact your local "wage and hour division" for insight into recourse.A "do not sue" clause should have sent up flags. Meaning that employer hadno intention of living up to his end.

Your lack of knowledge is obvious here. Most severance agreement
provide that the former employee will not sue for anything that
happened during his term of employment. Faileure of the employer to
pay the severance is not prohibited by the standard "will not sue"
clauses. Much of the time, the agreement states that the severed
employee is getting enhanced benefits by agreeing not to sue for
discrimination, work conditions, etc.
File for unemployment compensation and advise the state the employer had yousign this agreement.

There's nothing stopping him from filing for unemployment. If you are
laid off you are typically entitled to unemployment benefits.
They [the state] may not like that idea. But that would be their ultimatedecision.File a suit in small claims court. This would force the employer to appearin court.Then he'd have to answer to a judge as to why he isn't paying.

The first step would be to write a letter to the company stating that
if the severance isn't paid by a certain date, steps will be taken,
including hiring an attorney, to force the employer to abide by the
terms of the contract.
Legal advice is best obtained by hiring an attorney, not in a newsgroup.