15 quick tips for negotiating settlement agreements
Here are some one-liner tips on negotiating settlement agreements for those of you in a hurry.
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These tips complement the advice and guidance offered in our other articles on the subject, as well as the examples of letters used in settlement agreement negotiations that we provide for you to adapt and use for your own purposes.
These related guides and letters are listed in our Helpful Guides after the tips.
What to do
- Keep a written record of everything said verbally / in meetings
- Try to keep everything to emails
- Raise it informally
- Raise it as a formal Grievance
- Take time off sick if you feel stressed
- Hope that they offer you a settlement agreement
- Ask us to help you negotiate a higher sum and tax structure your deal (see our fees)
- If all else fails go to the Employment Tribunal
What not to do
- Resign too early
- Resign too late
- Tell your employer that you do not want to go to tribunal
- Tell your employer that you do want to go to tribunal (unless this is said without prejudice)
- Ask for a settlement agreement before they do
- Blatantly copy all of your emails onto a hard disk
- Feel pressured into taking a deal because you are presented with an arbitrary deadline
Top Tips
Alex Monaco
Keep a diary of evidence
Flag work issues in writing, but don’t openly request an exit package
See your GP and get signed off sick if you feel too stressed.
Next steps
To start with, have a look at the guides listed in this article and in the list below.
If you would like further help with negotiating your settlement, or if you already have a draft settlement and just want an experienced solicitor to review it, advise you on the contents and sign it off, then get in touch with Monaco Solicitors.
Our specialist employment law legal team is looking forward to hearing from you and to being able to offer you support and advice which meets your employment needs. Contact us:
- Via this link
- Phone: 020 7717 5259
- Email: communications@monacosolicitors.co.uk
Our related guides
- Settlement agreement negotiations
- Evidence gathering in employment disputes: How to keep records (and win your case)
- Subject access requests made by employees
- Subject access request templates
- Grievances at work
- Without prejudice communications
- Without prejudice letter templates
- Employment tribunals: An overview
You might want to get a rough idea of the value of your case by filling in our Settlement Calculator. Also think about getting some legal representation: if you’re armed with some tailored advice, you will not only know which moves to make and which moves to not even think about, but your employer is more likely to sit up and take notice. So if you want to discuss how we could help you to achieve a fair exit package, do get in touch.