Didn’t get the full package I was promised after being laid off… what can I do

Employment Law Forum
1

Los Angeles, CA

It’s been a year… yeah, I know, it’s been a tough year. Anyway, I was laid off last year and got my severance, except for a lump sum that was supposed to cover my insurance. Here’s what the letter says:

“As additional consideration for signing this Agreement, the Company will make a lump sum payment of $x,xx.xx, equal to the cost of 32 weeks of United Healthcare Choice Plan COBRA premiums at the ‘employee only’ level of coverage, minus applicable taxes. This payment can be used toward the cost of COBRA or ACA coverage and will be deposited as previously directed, or if no account is set up, by check to my home address on the first regular pay date 7 days after the Agreement’s effective date.”

HR never responded to my emails. Any advice on what to do?

2

Closing this for now since some questions from the person who posted have gone unanswered. Will open it up again if they come back.

3

Not a lawyer, but here’s a suggestion:

  1. Send a registered letter with a copy of the original agreement, include the amount they owe for 32 weeks of COBRA, and request payment as it’s part of your severance.

  2. Give them 30 days to respond. If they don’t, go to the labor board or any industry-specific oversight to file a complaint.

  3. You usually have around four years to claim unpaid wages, so if they ignore you, you might want to look into hiring a lawyer.

4

Have you been paying for COBRA out of your own pocket?

5

So you said you emailed but got no response… have you tried calling HR directly or even stopping by their office?

6

JennyDeepman said:
So you said you emailed but got no response… have you tried calling HR directly or even stopping by their office?

Email’s better for this kind of issue, though. It’s good to have everything in writing.

7

@Ori
True, I get that. But what if they just keep ignoring the emails? Then what’s the next step?

8

JennyDeepman said:
@Ori
True, I get that. But what if they just keep ignoring the emails? Then what’s the next step?

Legal action would be next. Having a record of emails with dates and times would be helpful in court.

9

@Ori
That’s definitely an option, but one phone call could save all the trouble. Feels odd not to at least try calling. But everyone’s different, so whatever works best.

10

What exactly did you say in your email, and when did you send it?

11

Ira said:
What exactly did you say in your email, and when did you send it?

I emailed the HR manager several times over the past few months but never got a reply.

12

Just so I’m clear… did they end up sending the lump payment?

13

Hart said:
Just so I’m clear… did they end up sending the lump payment?

Nope, I didn’t get the lump sum that was supposed to cover insurance. They only gave me the severance check for 32 weeks and unused vacation pay, but the insurance money was never paid.

14

@Charley
Is there anything specific in that letter about severance? Did they give you the severance all at once?

15

Morgan said:
@Charley
Is there anything specific in that letter about severance? Did they give you the severance all at once?

“The Company will make a lump sum payment of $x,xx.xx, covering the equivalent cost of 32 weeks of United Healthcare COBRA at the ‘employee only’ level, after tax.”

Am I reading this right? It sounds like the severance was based on 32 weeks of COBRA coverage, not actual pay plus insurance.

16

@Zinnia
Exactly why I asked. Looks like they’re counting the insurance coverage as part of the severance. It might not be severance plus 32 weeks of COBRA.