A severance payment is money and or benefits received by an employee from an employer. An employee might receive a severance payment if he or she is laid off from work. Often times when a company downsizes, and thus releases employees, it will give the workers a severance package that includes a predetermined amount of pay. For example, an employee might receive three months of salary via severance payments. The amount of severance an employee receives depends greatly upon the employer, the income of the employee, and the situation that induced the severance package. In the United States, there is not a law that dictates an employer provide a severance package to a departing employee. However, under the Fair Labor Standards Act, employers are required to pay a terminated employee for time served and for any vacation time accrued but not spent. Employers often provide severance packages, though, to ward off potential lawsuits by appeasing the employee.