Thread regarding Wells Fargo & Co. layoffs

@2vdy+16HSflPV you state it as if it's fact. Why should I do your work for you? You make an unsubstantiated claim and then throw 'search Google' for your answer? If it's true, post a link. You're a shill for HR.

@2wnh+16HSflPV You obviously have no understanding of how these things work, so you go right ahead and trash your own situation. Google it if you want examples. Sure it won't happen in every case...but it can and does happen.

If you're so sure that the company can't come after you for violating your contract with them - go ahead and do it - let us know how that turns out for you.

Yes it’s a contract to not sue WF. BUT, if you know WF has violated the law get proof before you leave. Take pictures, printout emails, tape record conversations, whatever you need to do. Then, find an attorney that will file a whistleblower lawsuit. The payoff is you get 1/3 of any settlement WF agrees to for wrong doing. Just make sure you have proof of wrongdoing... can’t be hearsay or rumors.

@2jaz+16HSflPV name a company that has sued, i'll wait. Agreements have been broken with Qualcomm, Disney, ComEs, and not a single one sued the former employee. Stop fronting for HR.

This is, in fact how it works, despite what some of the posters on this thread "think" or want to believe.

• you are bound by what you sign and you can sign away your right to sue. You cannot sign away something that is illegal to sign away (like signing yourself into indentured servitude) but it is perfectly legal for you to forfeit your right to sue.
• WF can and will go after you if you violate the terms of the package and they find out about it.
• you cannot negotiate the severance package (I.e. how many weeks of payment you get, or striking out a clause you dont like). This is not even up to wells fargo - it's something the regulators watch and have come down hard on WF for past practices (surprise!) WF has to follow policy for everyone - period.
• the only thing that is sometimes negotiable is the mix between working and non-working in the notice period...and in most cases it is not negotiable.

If you don't sign it, you're gone anyway. You certainly should understand what you're signing, and if you don't feel comfortable that you understand the document you should have an attorney look it over and interpret it for you.

As someone else on this thread said, this is standard practice in large companies - not just wells fargo.

@1nax+16HSflPV you're delusional, no, it doesn't have to meet your requirements. You either accept it or you don't. Regardless, you're gone

@lzo+16HSflPV, a great way to put it; everything is a negotiation I will do the counter if their offer is not adequate. Then take it from there. Its all business, and has to meet both groups requirements.

this is another foreign govt tactic; honestly pay here is bad so i am not too worried about it.

Here's the real thing - you can't sign your rights away. Period. Just like you can't sign yourself into indentured servitude (although it feels like it at times). The contract is a legal document, but basically unenforceable. Post a link to case where a company has ever sued an employee after they were terminated because they broke their severance contract.

Big difference of opinion as to whether the severage agreement is negotiable. Some say don't bother, not worth the expense and hassle. My view is that it is worth the minimal expense of attorney review and calculated risk of possible counteroffer if that review finds some leverage in your situation, or comes across some dumb-a–, plainly egregious one-sided terms that no court would enforce anyways.

I will not take a severance and will sue them for retaliation since I reported multiple times to ethics how were were not doing the right thing and still no one addressed the issues

Lol, what is the point of having a lawyer look at it. They are not negotiable. Take it or leave it

Just to correct what I meant to say is WF Legal Dept is a thousand times more powerful then you are. They can afford to fight your claim for years if the want to. But can you afford to pay ur attorney fees for years? Most likely not. So, in reality, it’s take it or leave it situation. And 99.9 % of the time an employee will take it.

Paraphrasing - WF Legal is a thousand times better than you can ever imagine.

That’s so weird because all of the millions of accounts that people didn’t want were fraud, which is a crime. Therefore, WF legal was unable to prevent employees from committing a crime, millions of times over. Apply this logic to severance agreements and act accordingly and in your own interest.

Three options is correct. Many comments misunderstand what attorneys do. The suggestion to hire attorney to review severance agreement is solid – this DOES NOT cost thousands of dollars – this is not necessarily a decision to file a lawsuit.

A good attorney will review agreement and your situation and look for LEVERAGE that MAY help you negotiate; i.e., attorney can evaluate your facts and identify possible claims. Threatening to sue is part of the negotiating process/game.

Callout to the HR troll/shill — You have got to be joking about " their lawyers are a thousand times better then u can ever imagine."

Get real – this is Wells Fargo! – why would anyone assume WF is any better at complying with employment laws than they are with banking laws? Their boilerplate docs are likely a jumble of cut-and-paste, ill-advised changes they slap in after every lawsuit they lose.

You actually have THREE options — It is not necessarily a "take it or leave it" situation. The severance agreement is an OFFER – so you actually have THREE options:
1) accept the offer
2) reject the offer or
3) respond with a counter-offer, i.e., you propose changes/edits.

Granted, there may not be a lot of room for negotation, but it is usually wise to carefully review and/or invest in an attorney to review the severance agreement and assist in preparing a reasonable counter-offer.

You say WF is too big and too well-prepared – i.e. can't fight city hall?. Well, that's what WF is relying on, they want you to roll-over and sign the thing. Just saying there is a middle ground, maybe not a lot of room for negotation but don't immediately discount that you may have the basis for a reasonable counter-offer based on your situation.

Yes. You have 2 options. Sign it, and get 2 weeks per each year that you worked for compensation and agree to never sue them and talk negative about them to anyone. Or don’t sign it, and get nothing and can hire a lawyer that will cost thousands and thousands of dollars if u do decide to sue with no guarantee that u will win a penny since their lawyers are a thousand times better then u can ever imagine.

OP is correct.

Here's a reminder of some very basic things.

HR is not your friend, they are here to protect the company and shareholders from you.

Severance means you get X if you go away quietly. There's a goodwill component but it's mostly about protecting the company and shareholders.

Wells Fargo has committed serious crimes and ruined tens of thousands of lives over the last decade and we're all paying the price for the Stumpf Gang's crimes.

Be well and stay safe.

No, we don't have it all wrong. We know exactly what is involved with severance. It is just that most of us aren't going to be going on major news outlets to talk sh– about Wells Fargo. Seriously, who would care? Most of us know that we can be cut at any time. As adults, we adapt and move on.

So while it is a time based contract, it is nice to have while the adults find another job.

But hey, nothing says you have to sign it. If you get laid off, I think you should step up and show the man that YOU can't be bought. YOU will not be silenced!