🏭 Industry Guide

Severance Pay by Industry — What's Normal in Your Field?

Severance norms vary widely by industry. A tech engineer and a retail worker with the same tenure will often receive very different packages. Here's what to expect and what to push for.

💻 Technology 🏦 Finance & Banking 🏥 Healthcare 🏭 Manufacturing & Retail 🎓 Education

💻 Technology

Software engineers, product managers, and data scientists — especially at public tech companies — often receive the most generous severance packages in the US.

Factor	What to Know
Typical range	2–4 weeks per year of service; senior ICs and directors often receive 3–6 months minimum
Equity acceleration	Common — single or double-trigger acceleration for unvested RSUs is standard at larger tech firms
WARN Act exposure	Very common in 2023–2025 wave of mass tech layoffs — many employees entitled to 60 days back pay
Non-competes	California bans them outright; most tech workers in CA are free to join competitors immediately
PIP severance	Employees placed on a PIP before layoff may be offered reduced severance — negotiate carefully

🏦 Finance & Banking

Wall Street banks and financial institutions have well-established severance norms, but packages vary significantly by role and seniority.

Factor	What to Know
Typical range	2–4 weeks per year; MDs and managing directors typically negotiate 6–12 months
Bonus treatment	Discretionary bonuses are often forfeited on termination — check your contract for "earned but unpaid" language
Garden leave	Common in UK finance — paid to stay home and not work; counts as notice period
Non-solicitation	Very common and more likely to be enforced than non-competes; protects client and colleague relationships
Deferred comp	Unvested deferred compensation is usually forfeited — this is a major negotiating chip

🏥 Healthcare

Nurses, doctors, hospital administrators, and healthcare executives have unique severance considerations tied to licensing and non-competes.

Factor	What to Know
Typical range	1–2 weeks per year for clinical staff; executives may receive 3–6 months
Non-compete enforceability	Patient non-solicitation clauses are more commonly enforced than full non-competes
Tail insurance	Physicians need "tail" malpractice coverage after leaving — negotiate who pays this in your severance
Licensing	Ensure your license is in good standing before signing any severance release
Sign-on bonus clawback	Many healthcare workers received large sign-on bonuses with 2–3 year clawbacks — understand your exposure

🏭 Manufacturing & Retail

Plant closures and retail bankruptcies often trigger WARN Act obligations. Workers in these sectors tend to receive less severance than white-collar employees.

Factor	What to Know
Typical range	1 week per year of service; unionised workers may have significantly better protections
WARN Act	Plant closures of 50+ workers over 30 days trigger the federal WARN Act — 60 days notice or pay
Union protections	Collective bargaining agreements often mandate minimum severance — check your CBA
PTO payout	Many manufacturing states require payout of accrued PTO upon termination
Mass layoff claims	Class actions by former employees are common — individual claims may benefit from joining a group

🎓 Education

Teachers, university staff, and school administrators face unique employment structures with tenure, academic year contracts, and union rules.