If so any recommendations?
10 replies (most recent on top)
Have a lawyer review the severance package deal agreement but Nike legal is notorious for not getting back to other lawyers.
The 2018 Me too case is still in courts, they didn't even show for that and then got upset that documents requested were approved.
I talked to the lawyer in charge of that case, often it isn't worth your time even if you had grounds to sue.
I would just in case and especially if you have a non compete.
It would be difficult to win against Nike, especially in a lay off of this size. You will need to prove that you were discriminated due to a protected characteristics (eg. age, gender, s-xual orientation, religion, etc). HR/legal will make sure that in aggregate, Nike has not laid off any one protected group more than another, which will make it hard to prove your case. You will need specific evidence that you were laid off due to a protected characteristic (eg. email, slack, prior written complaint to HR). Just showing that your manager doesn't like you or treated you poorly isn't enough. You need to show that your manager treated you that way because of a protected characteristic.
Even if you feel you have a case, you will need to pay for a lawyer to fight against Nike. Unless you have a slam-dunk case, no attorney is going to take this on contingency. I know this isn't satisfying, but it is reality. I consulted a lawyer for my own situation with Nike, so I am just sharing what I learned using my hard-earned money.
If you are laid off, just take your lumps and move on. There is life after Nike. Good luck to you.
Depends on the context. Most of the posts here are somewhat right, but not completely.
Speaking from personal experience, there are definitely situations in which Nike will increase the amount it pays in severance, but in fairness to the earlier posters, you’d have to have a case (i.e. Nike discriminating against you on the basis of race, gender, etc. or s-xual harassment claims).
For context, I was able to get my severance from 8 weeks to 52 weeks after speaking to a lawyer.
Even if you meet with an attorney unless you can demonstrate you were discriminated against in some way they won’t be able to do anything for you. It has to be evidence that will stand up in court in front of a judge. That’s very hard. Take the package. There is no employment contract that is as breached as there is no contract at all.
Taking legal action On what ground?
It is at-will employee
You have to sign off your right to sue to get severance
Being employed in the US is not a two way contract. There's no negotiation on your exit unless you're a very high up executive. Fighting a layoff is a futile effort especially against a giant company like Nike that has an army of attorneys.
Not worth it. Companies aren’t required to give severance here in the U.S., unless it’s in a union contract. Even with that, most of white collar workers aren’t part of the union.
If you want the package you have to sign away your right to sue. They don’t owe you anything at all. Be glad to get severance check if laid off. What grounds would you have anyways? It’s employment at will. We are glorified temps.
What are you talking about? If you are laid off that's that.