Severance pay termination; subsidiary vs business partner

What is the name of your state? Ohio

I was terminated after being employed for 15 years at the same company. A two page severance agreement was provided which allows payment of my salary for 17 weeks.

We had a consulting firm that is a business partner of my former employer and the consulting firm may be interested in hiring me. My former employer is telling me that once I receive a paycheck from the consulting company, whether I'm placed at my former employer or not, my severance agreement/pay will be terminated.

The severance agreement only states that if my former employer "or any SUBSIDIARY offers (me) a comparable position...payment under this Agreement shall cease as of the date (I am) offered the position."

Since the consulting company is not a SUBSIDIARY, but a BUSINESS PARTNER, I can't see how the severance agreement could be terminated. My former employer's legal department is telling me that, since there is a "business relationship" with the consulting company, I am getting preferential hiring that I wouldn't have had if we had not been business partners.

Any takers?

Sounds like the employer may have worded the agreement poorly as it relates to how they want to define subsidiary organizations and other companies they do business with.

Without seeing the severance agreement, it's very hard to comment however if it's a standard waiver of your rights to file a discrimination or other legal claim with the gov't and related lawsuit, if the employer breeches the contract by ceasing to make severance payments, then you're free to file a claim for any of the rights waived in the agreement. For example, if you were terminated because of your race, you can then file a race discrimination complaint with the EEOC.

It's doubtful you can file suit simply because the employer ceased severance payments since all that likely occurred is that the severance agreement became void.

You'll have to show the actual document to an attorney if you want a bonafide legal opinion though.