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Negotiating an Early Retirement Package
By Frank Watson

More and more companies are turning to early retirement packages for their employees, whether it’s for the benefit of the employees themselves or part of a company’s efforts to obtain a voluntary reduction of the workforce before turning to layoffs as an option. Even if your employer has presented early retirement as the only option rather than just one option, you can negotiate with them to obtain a more favorable early retirement package. When you prepare to negotiate for more money, be sure to prepare for it. Your employer may try to present the option as something where you’ll have to just take it or leave it, but don’t give in. Just as with car sales, you will have to be a little stubborn to get what you want when negotiating an early retirement package. Remember that even if your employer has set a deadline for their offer, it can change at any time. An early retirement package is the money that you’ll be using to live off of for a long time, so keep motivated by your desire to live your years out comfortably. Keep in mind that if all else fails, there are forms of legal recourse to turn to if you feel that you’ve received an unfair offer. Lawyers are skilled in negotiation and can be a big help.

Be Open

When negotiating your early retirement package, don’t start with the amount you want, but add a little more to that offer instead. Remember that the process of negotiation involves some give and take; be prepared to come down from your first offer in order to find some middle ground that your employer will find reasonable. By the same token, don’t set unrealistic expectations, because that can harm the negotiations. Make use of whatever resources you have-friends in the company, sympathetic bosses, whatever you can-to get an idea of what a fair early retirement package would be and what others have been getting as offers.

Be Candid

When you’re negotiating an early retirement package isn’t the time to be modest about your achievements with the company, or to be too proud to talk about your living needs. Before you negotiate, prepare a list of your achievements with your company so you have a comprehensive list of just how much value you add to the company. While negotiating, don’t be afraid to talk about any strains on your standard of living the early retirement package may put on you, if that’s the case. Just saying that you want more money often isn’t enough to win negotiations; you need to show exactly why you deserve it and why you need it.

Author Details:
Frank Watson retired from work a couple of years ago and now, in his spare time, writes articles, for various web sites about retirement and related topics.

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