To think she’s lying? Or do companies really do this?

[BlazingSunsh]

A friend I have got closer to over recent months told me that she fell out with her employer, a law firm, and was paid 70k if she agreed to leave without further fuss. She was on 90k at the time. The dispute was over her workload/what she had been given and how she felt she had been blocked to progress. The company disagreed but wanted her to leave so apparently offered this? I find this totally unbelievable?! 70k with no tax? Do these things happen?! If so I want to try it as that’s basically two years of my entire income after tax!

I worked at a company many years ago where compromise agreements were the norm and some left with six figure pay offs. One ex-colleague's settlement enabled her to pay off her mortgage and completely change careers.

She’s probably not feeling brilliant about it OP.

It’s nice to have a lump sum but she’ll have paid some tax on it and it will dwindle - she probably can’t afford to retire or stop work, it’s not a life changing sum. Her professional reputation might suffer and people will gossip.

I reckon she might be making light of the matter to save face.

Yes someone I worked with walked away with £70k. She really pulled a fast one.

Well yeah, it's less than a year's pay

I know several people who received a "golden handshake". When they were nearing retirement age. They all accepted and took early retirement.

They didn’t pay her 2 years income 😂

Happens all the time.
You won't be successful so don't try it.

I was on £48. Got £30. This was 20 years ago. So percentage wise roughly the same. Look at it as a percentage of her annual salary. That percentage of yours is what you would get. But honestly based on your salary it’s unlikely you’re doing the kind of position where this would happen.

@Bunbry please tell me how!

You won't be able to pull it off.
You don't understand settlement agreements for a start.
You don't understand why people get to this stage and how.

Try it - try what exactly?!
Your friend seemed to have legitimate issues.
What a thing to be jealous about!

it's so so common. I have had it twice once as the person I was working with was a bullying bitch and they couldn't fire her. and second when we were taken over and they just wanted all the old staff out and we pushed back. I got a nice few pound each time and walked in to a new job each time as soon as I could. no issues and hasn't damaged my career progression at all and it's a small world my work. in one of my old places another guy was covering for a women on maternity leave. he was loved (she was a bitch ) hit all targets he was suppse to hit and more. got on really well with teh team. the plan was to be that he would be her assistant when she came back. she came back from maternity hated the fact that the team loved him and he did so well. she was only back 2 months and he was hauled into hr given 6 months pay and a reference to leave that eve. she was such a bitch. moral was so low for a long long time after. in most cases its so hard to fire someone so easier to pay them off. in other cases if your not liked and people have power anything can happen. you have had your eyes open to the real world my dear

My work 'offers' a year's salary to get 'rid' of people. Usually absence related.

It's never talked about as such.

I know someone who was given 6 months garden leave when she left her job in a law firm - that would have been worth considerably more than 70K! I think it's quite common if you're in a high up position as a professional.

Yes, this happens all the time. Where I work there's a (rather ruthless) performance review process every 6 months. 2 bad ratings in a row, and generally it's a choice of going on a PIP or getting a large handout and just leaving immediately. People rarely survive a PIP, so it's less risky to take the handout and run.

If that’s two years income for you, no matter what you pull it’s hardly likely you’ll come out with the same amount.

I'm a lawyer and often deal with settlement and termination agreements.

I got £120,000 (lump sum)to settle after my company was sold to a competitor! My actual annual salary was about £85,000 but they were sending me a temporary retainment payment every month for the duration of the acquisition to make sure I didn't jump ship early before it was completed. I was apparently key to the acquisition, and the settlement was based on that sum as well. Meant I could buy a house for the first time!

I also got gardening leave once at a subsequent job which meant I was given three months salary as normal. That was because I kept having to take time off sick with an underlying condition, and it was really affecting the one other legal team member so they wanted to recruit a replacement. Now that one, I wish I'd pushed for more because the underlying condition was serious and (obviously) not my fault 😬

£70 000 is nothing to a lot of companies. My dh is a finance director. Today he paid a bill of ten thousand pounds for some pot plants for people's offices.

People are always getting paid off. It's a quick and easy way to get rid of someone who isn't able to do what needs to be done. A big company will save more than £70 000 by getting rid of someone who is incompetent and replacing them with someone who is.

Why on earth would you disbelieve your DF? Women have .been shat on from greiat heights since fire was created. To escape scot free with a 70k pay off before the shizen hit the fan is a victory in my books.

Yes, my last boss got a hefty pay off to avoid her taking the company to tribunal. I've no idea how much as it came with a very strict NDA.

As they used to say in the 60s, life's a shit sandwich; the more bread you've got, the less shit you eat.

A previous (very senior) boss got money thrown at him to leave - he was an utter sex pest, so seemed very unfair they didn’t just fire him with no golden goodbye.

Yes happens regularly at my company. The amounts vary depending on who’s instigated them going, how much dirt they have on the company and how quickly they want them to go. Part of the pay out agreement is that the employee can never discuss the reason with anyone and they can’t go to tribunal.

I have 2 family members who received payoffs. Both were offered it to leave without fuss. One got 6 months' pay, and the other was 18 months from retirement and was sent on gardening leave until retirement and paid a full salary for the 18 months. It's a way of avoiding a costly time-consuming tribunal.

It’s possible, especially if the company were worried they had fucked up, but for the salary she was on that’s a huge pay off. She might be exaggerating the sun even if the story is broadly true.

yes it happens. In 2009 I was paid £60k to leave, after some negotiation. It was a years wages which was fair enough tbh