NextChapter

Your rights at work, and what you sign on the way out

Non-disparagement clauses, NDAs, noncompetes, return-to-office rules and severance terms decide what you can say, where you can go next and what you keep. The stories below follow how employers use them, and how employees push back.

Is this you?

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Signs this is you

  • You were offered a severance, exit or transfer agreement and are not sure what it stops you from saying or doing.
  • Your contract has a noncompete or non-disparagement clause and you are thinking about a move.
  • A new policy (return to office, a performance plan, a reorganization) is changing what you signed up for.

In the news

Article · Forbes · Nov 5, 2026

Key issues to negotiate in an employment severance package

Forbes explains how to negotiate a reasonable severance package that protects your interests, for anyone who may face having their employment terminated in an uncertain economy.

  • Tips and tricks
  • Your rights at work

Article · HuffPost · Nov 4, 2026

Five signs you are being quietly pushed out of your job

HuffPost lists five signs of being slowly pushed out of a role, which can start with subtle signals that your career growth will not be supported.

  • Tips and tricks
  • Your rights at work

See every story on this topic

In your favor

  • Terms are often negotiable before you sign

    Employers that want a clean exit usually have room on the amount, the length of a restriction and how broad a clause is. Asking costs little before you sign and a lot after.

  • Some limits are set by law, not by the contract

    Rules on what an agreement can stop you reporting, and on which restrictions a court will enforce, differ by role and by state, and managers usually have fewer protections than rank-and-file staff. Read the clause against your own state and role.

Watch for

  • Broad non-disparagement language

    A clause that bars any negative statement can reach what you say to future employers, recruiters and reviewers, and it may carry repayment of your severance if broken.

  • Signing deadlines

    A short deadline is a negotiating tactic. Ask for the full time you are entitled to, and use it to see what else is on offer elsewhere.

Go deeper

Other journeys: Benefits that matter, Pay and cost of living, Side hustles and second incomes