Laid-Off: What Compensation is Available?

Losing your job is something that every worker worries about on a day-to-day basis, especially during these tough economic times. When employees lose their jobs its either because they have been fired for violating the terms of their contract, they haven’t performed to their employer’s expectations, or the company laid them off for cost cutting purposes. There are various forms of compensation available to workers without a job to apply for and obtain to help them pay the bills while they search for a new job.

Option 1: Unemployment Benefits

The first type of compensation available to someone that has been laid-off from their job is unemployment benefits. Unemployment benefits are a government form of compensation at the state level paid to people that have lost their job as a result of cutbacks, not because it was the employee’s fault. For instance, the employee was let go for cost cutting purposes and was not let go because he or she didn’t perform their required job duties. Unemployment benefits can only be paid for a period of 26 weeks, they do not have to be consecutive, but they have to be in the same Benefit Year. Each of the 50 states has their own unemployment compensation laws that define a maximum amount and a minimum amount for weekly payments. The person on unemployment benefits must file weekly claims to keep receiving payments.

Option 2: Severance Packages

Severance packages are somewhat of a consolation prize for being laid off. When a company makes cutbacks to their staff they offer the employees, they are laying off a severance package. The severance package will be for a certain amount of money. Usually, a severance package will be worth one week for every year the employee worked at the specified company. For instance, if a laid off employee worked at Company X for 10 years, the employee will receive 10 weeks of severance pay when they are laid off from Company X.

Option 3: Disability

Sometimes a worker comes down with an illness or a physical disability that forces their employer to let that employee go. Even though this might go against wrongful termination laws, this sometimes happens. In other instances, the employer might release an employee based on the terms of their contract regarding disability. If an employee is released because of a disability, they can file a lawsuit against their employer or they can file for Social Security Disability Benefits. These benefits are payments made to the disabled worker to help that worker pay for food, housing, bills, medical bills, and other daily necessities while they are out of a job. Disability claims are typically backlogged all over the country because the number of people filing for disability benefits has risen over the years.

Option 4: Worker’s Compensation

Worker’s compensation is not a form unemployment compensation outright but it can be considered a form of unemployment compensation when the worker laid off is collecting on worker’s compensation. This means that if an employee was placed on worker’s compensation for suffering an injury while at work they are still legally entitled to collect on worker’s compensation even if they are laid off by the company under which they are employed. The worker might also be eligible for wage loss compensation if they are laid off while on worker’s compensation or laid off while collecting on disability.

Option 5: File a Lawsuit

Filing a lawsuit might be the only form of compensation available to some workers laid off by the company they work for if they are not eligible for any other form of compensation such as unemployment benefits, disability, worker’s compensation, or severance pay. When filing a lawsuit, the fired employee can ask for compensation for pain and suffering, wrongful termination, loss of wages, mental anguish and much more.

Get Legal Help

When laid off from your job the worker should contact an unemployment attorney immediately to determine what type of compensation the worker is eligible for after they have lost their job.