2020 Disney Severance Package: What to do if you lose your job and benefits

2020 Disney Severance Package: What to do if you lose your job and benefits

The Walt Disney Co. announced Tuesday that [it] is planning to lay off 28,000 workers at its theme parks in California and Florida as it struggles with the months long closure of Disneyland, and capacity limits and other restrictions at Walt Disney World — all due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Disney didn’t disclose how many of the job cuts were at Disneyland and Disney World.

Disney World brought back thousands of workers when its theme parks in reopened in a limited capacity in mid-July.

The resort, however, has been unable to bring back thousands more who had been furloughed since April.

Meanwhile, Disneyland, which shuttered its parks in mid-March remain closed as it waits for guidelines from California officials.

The layoffs come as theme park company struggle with the financial hit their businesses have taken amid the pandemic.

Earlier this month, SeaWorld permanently laid off nearly 1,900 workers in Orlando. Univeral Orlando notified the state of Florida this month that it would be extending the furloughs for nearly 5,400 workers due to the “unforseen impacts of COVID-19” on its operations.

Disney officials said the company would provide severance packages for the employees, where appropriate, and also offer other services to help workers with job placement. 

What to do if you lost your job at Disney

2020 Disney Severance Package: What to do if you lose your job and benefits

The COVID-19 pandemic has been tough on most people.

The economies around the world have been hit. Some have lost their jobs, others had salary cuts.

As workers consider their financial options, they may turn to unemployment benefits.

3 Things you should do if you lost your job at Disney during Covid-19

Read your contract

Once the employer has stated that you will be let go from your position, go back and read the employment contract.

This contract has details stating under what circumstances can individuals be fired from a job.

Look for details on the financial benefits offered in case of a job cut initiated by the company.

As far as possible, seek an immediate advance package from the company so that any financial liabilities in terms of loan installments and credit card dues can be paid off for about two to three months.

Also, an employee should insist on getting an official letter or email from the organization to this effect.

Seek outplacement services

Several mid-sized and large organizations have the provision of outplacement services.

This means that if they let go of an employee, he/she is to be offered hand-holding in finding a job.

For this purpose, companies take the help of outplacement firms who help selected employees find alternative employment.

Hence, as soon as a company informs of a job cut decision, employees must write to the human resources team to seek clarity on whether outplacement services can be availed of.

Utilize time to work on freelance roles

Even if you are not able to secure a new job, don’t fret.

Freelance roles are slowly opening up in sectors like IT, advertising, e-commerce, financial services and media/entertainment in the areas of digital marketing, data entry, customer services, online sales and content development.

The compensation in freelance roles may not replace the monthly pay for a salaried professional.

However, the more the number of freelance projects you take up, the better is the pay.

Lost job and Health Insurance during Covid-19

Americans who have lost health insurance since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic might have a new option.

They should check out the federal marketplace created by the Affordable Care Act.

It turns out the federal agency had realized that within the Affordable Care Act, a special enrollment period could be triggered in the case of a disaster declaration such as the one for COVID-19.

A recent report from the Urban Institute found that across the country, as many as 3 million people lost insurance coverage and 2 million became uninsured.

Analysts from the organization also estimated that more than half the people who became uninsured would be eligible for subsidized coverage on the marketplace, but had not taken advantage of it.

This would be a good opportunity to, to get folks enrolled and help folks that were affected by this pandemic.

We encourage folks to really go to an assister or a navigator and just let them help you to figure out your income, figure out what the best plan might be for your budget and your needs.

We stand really ready to help and eager to help as many folks as we possibly can here at Mintco Financial, just call us or email us.

Lost Job at Disney and also Health Insurance

Workers who’ve lost their job at Disney can stay on their employer’s health insurance plan for up to 18 months through the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA).

However, this option can be expensive.

That’s because, as an employee, your employer covers a portion of the costs of your health insurance plan.

Employers, on average, covered 82% of the premium for individuals and 70% of the premium for families.

Under COBRA, you’re on the hook to cover 100% of premiums, plus a 2% administrative fee.

It’s worth asking whether your employer can help cover some or all of these costs for either the full 18-month period or until you’re able to enroll in another plan during open enrollment.

If your employer is able to continue paying their portion directly to the insurance company, you’ll lower your taxable income.

Otherwise, crunch the numbers of how much in premiums you’ll expect to pay out of pocket, and ask for that amount to be added to your severance payout either upfront or over time.

If you receive life insurance or disability income insurance from your employer, discuss whether they’ll be able to extend coverage for a period of time after you’re laid off. One month is a good place to start.

Lost job at Disney and Life Insurance

Employer Life Insurance is generally provided in the form of group life insurance.

The employer pays some or all of the premiums on the policy, which is typically written for values of $100,000 or less.

When you are terminated from the company, the employer is no longer obligated to pay your premiums, and you are technically no longer a member of the group the policy is written for.

Upon termination, the insurance company or your company’s human resource department will contact you with your options regarding the insurance.

Your options, in this case, are to convert the policy to an individual life insurance policy, cancel the policy, port the policy to another group plan, or allow the coverage to lapse. Unless you are provided with other options, these are the choices you have to choose from.

Converting the policy means that you keep the insurance policy, but convert it to an individual policy.

Your premiums will increase, because the employer is no longer paying a portion of the premiums, and you may have other fees that need to be paid as well. Once the conversion is complete, the policy belongs to you, and you are responsible for making the full premium payments.

If you choose to terminate the policy or allow it to lapse, you simply lose the coverage. In some cases, you may be eligible to receive some of the policy value, specifically the accumulated cash value, but this is generally the exception, not the rule.

Once the policy has terminated, you will need to find a new life insurance provider and secure coverage of your own, either as an individual policy or as part of the group policy being offered by your new employer.

Convert group life insurance or group disability to an individual plan if you lost your job at Disney

After a layoff, find out whether it’s possible to change a group life insurance policy or a group disability plan to an individual one.

If you’re young and healthy, you can likely find cheaper life insurance quotes on your own.

But others may not be assured of that.

To avoid unnecessary risk, convert right away – if only to act as a bridge until you get a new job or secure a better insurance policy on your own.

One reason to act quickly is that insurers often require you to convert a life insurance policy within 31 days of leaving an employer.

No matter the situation, don’t feel reluctant or scared to negotiate for a better severance package, including stronger insurance protection after a termination.

You can ask an employer for anything. What are they going to do: fire you? 

Lot Job at Disney what to do with your 401k

While the contributions you make to your 401(k) belong to you, any employer match might be considered unvested until you’ve worked with the company for a certain period of time.

If you haven’t reached that point at the time of a layoff, you may be able to ask to keep unvested shares of your retirement plan, or other stock and stock options.

Either way, remember to check if you’ll be able to keep your retirement plan with your employer, or if you’ll need to roll it into another investment vehicle by a certain deadline.

If you are high-income earner and can afford to funnel more toward your long-term savings, ask your employer if you can contribute the maximum amount to your 401(k) plan before your last paycheck.

The maximum amount an individual can contribute in 2020 is $19,500 for people under 50 years old and $26,000 for those 50 and older.

What happens to your retirement plan after you leave the company varies depending on the type of plan you have.

Ask your employer what your options are, and consult with your accountant or financial advisor.

Mintco Financial Fee Only Financial Advisor – Disney Employees

Losing your job, even when the reason has nothing to do with you, can bring feelings of loss, powerlessness, and grief.

figure things out, such as your insurance and retirement plan.

Let us help you assess where you are financially, figure things out, such as your insurance budget and retirement plan.

This is a great time to sit down and create a financial plan to help get you through this period to the next phase of your career or life.

Our phone is 813-964-7100

Email info@mintcofinancial.com

www.MintcoFinancial.com

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Our team of financial advisors puts your interests first by helping with hourly financial planning, investment management, retirement planning, 401(k) allocation and health/life insurance.