golden handshake
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: A substantial financial payment or package given to an employee, typically a senior executive, upon their departure from a company. This is often offered as an incentive for early or voluntary retirement, or as part of a severance agreement following a takeover or corporate restructuring.
Usage
This term is used in business and corporate contexts to describe a specific type of termination benefit. It implies a payment that is generous and favorable to the employee, going beyond standard severance.
Examples
- The CEO received a golden handshake worth several million dollars after the merger was completed.
- To reduce the workforce, the company offered older employees a golden handshake to encourage early retirement.
- His contract included a clause guaranteeing a golden handshake if he was dismissed without cause.
Advanced Usage
- "To be given/get a golden handshake": This is the most common construction to describe receiving this benefit.
- Several long-serving directors were given a golden handshake when the firm was downsized.
Variants and Related Words
- Golden parachute (n): A similar, often even more lucrative, package of benefits guaranteed to a top executive in the event of a takeover or merger that results in the loss of their job. A "golden handshake" can be a component of a "golden parachute."
- Severance package/payment (n): A more general term for compensation given to a departing employee, which may or may not be as generous as a "golden handshake."
Synonyms
- Lucrative severance package
- Termination bonus
- Retirement incentive payment
Antonyms
- Summary dismissal
- Termination without benefits
Related Idioms/Phrases
- To walk away with a golden handshake: Emphasizes the act of leaving a job with this substantial payment.
- Despite the company's poor performance, the chairman walked away with a golden handshake.
Noun
- a lucrative severance agreement offered to an employee (usually as an incentive to retire)