angelman

Sadly my company is laying off 25% of it's workforce, around 500 people. Many of those people are expats.
A number of those being laid off are on contracts and the company is "buying them out". That means that they will continue to receive a weekly pay cheque as if they were still working, they just can't show up to work. The big issue of course is what that means for their immigration status. The whole things is being done as quickly as possible and the company lawyers and HR dept are not saying anything and being generally unhelpful (refusing to answer phones etc.). Some of these expats have just a week or so to go before they are laid off.
Of course if their contract was fully terminated (one option paid off with a lump sum), it would be simple, they would have to leave the country unless they can find something in the 15 days they are allowed to remain after the end of their contract.
For those people taking the weekly pay option it is less clear. They have been told they are not allowed to look for work during the period they are being paid. I would imagine this would mean that they are still under contract and thus their visa would still be valid.
Any thoughts or ideas on this horrible situation?

scrubbedexpat099

Sounds like gardening leave, if they get any bene's and those bene's still continue then it sounds like they are still employed.

Devil will be in the detail.

RICH

Regardless of immigration status, what would stop someone from looking for another job?.... Sounds like you don't have the full story.
Different visas have different requirements regarding employment. How do you know these people are not Permanent Residents, and why do you care?

angelman

I care because many of these people are my friends. I may also be one of them too. I dont have the visa problem as I have a greencard though.
My friends are on h1b and o1. They were told they had 2 options, one was a lump sum and their contract would be terminated and they could look for work. The other was to receive a weekly pay cheque, they just couldn't access the campus/offices or actually do any work. It's difficult because they have to plan their lives but some only have a few days notice and have not received any termination contracts or details at this point.
I am assuming that since they are being told they cannot get employed elsewhere whilst receiving their "paycheque" then they are still under contract and thus employed as far as a visa is concerned. We are just a bit desperate for information at such short notice.

angelman

I guess this is the closest answer to my question.

http://www.justanswer.com%2Fimmigrat...cDse2GSw8kPcMA

GeoffM

Even changing the %2F to forward slash doesn't bring up a working link.

But I agree with Rich, there's no obvious reason why they can't look for work. Maybe something existing in their employment contracts but would that even be legal? And if they found a job and if they got the immigration stuff sorted out, would either party care?

RICH

The whole thing sounds hypothetical to me. Each individual will have their own circumstances.

A PR friend doing the research for a group of H1b /O1 types seems tenuous.

ian-mstm

I suspect it's more a matter of them being told not to look for work because if anyone asks why the company will come under scrutiny... and the company doesn't want that. You said yourself they're trying to do this as quickly as possible. The company can't force them not to look for work. After all, they aren't prisoners... and if they find another company (especially the H-1B's) willing to sponsor them, they can remain in the US. Not sure how that would affect the O-1's, but it's probably much the same.

Ian

retzie

The OP has a long history on BE. It seems quite reasonable to me they would turn to a known source to get information for friends.

Sorry, I don't really have anything much to contribute to the question at hand. Perhaps the people in question can find one good immigration attorney for everyone to work with? It may help cut down any legwork (ie. hours).

Eric S

Is it only the people who continue to get paid that can't look for work? Maybe it's because they will still be technically employed (with still valid visa). And you can't work for another company while on a visa sponsored by the first company.

Or something like that?

- Eric S.

Noorah101

They might not be able to accept employment, but I can't see any reason they couldn't *look* for work.

Rene

angelman

Thanks for your helpful and informative comments RICH. It definitely helps me give some advice to my friends. I shall make sure to recommend this board to them and to ask for you specifically in the future.

I am not a troll, yes this is a real situation, yes they are some of my best friends. I am just seeing if I can give any useful advice to them. I won't reveal the name of the company involved but it's very well known.

I suspect the situation is probably quite simple. As long as the company does not notify the immigration people that they have terminated their contracts they should be ok. If they do find another job then they would of course transfer their existing visa to the new company, their weekly payout from this company would stop and they would be paid by the new company. It's still speculation without firm word from the lawyers or HR but I feel fairly confident that this is the case. We can but hope.

Being laid off from a job where you are on a visa is really tough. I believe you get 15 days to pack your bags and leave unless you find another job in the meantime. I have another friend that was just starting to get their greencard and I believe that will not be possible now. It's very hard to get really good advice on some of these slightly more unusual situations.

angelman

Sorry yes I think I wasnt clear. They can of course look for work but when they accept new employment then of course the payout from their ex employer would end.

jeffreyhy

As you've explained it, the people who accept "the weekly pay option" are not being terminated, they're simply told that they do not have to come in to the office and earn their pay for the duration of their contract.

As Boiler wrote, and you seem to recognize as well, the devil is in the details and the company is not giving you all of the details.

Regards, JEff

Bob

Non-competes can be enforced in some states, though for CA, you'd need to be pretty senior I thought.

Anyway, as this is CA, with that many people and that many getting laid off, they can't do it quickly, they've got to give 90 days notice I think it is and it's got to be published.

As for folks trying to stick around while on a visa, could do a COS to a B2, to tie up lose ends, sell house, kids finish term, that kind of stuff, would certainly give more time to find a job at least.