Garry Marr: Your severance could be a financial windfall, if you handle it right

Getting laid off is brutal. I’ve been there. In the heat of the moment, few people think of losing their job as anything less than catastrophic.

But when it comes with a severance package intended to cushion the financial blow, it can also be a windfall that requires planning to maximize the benefit and limit the tax consequences.

I’m not going to debate the merit of Canadian employment law, but the reality is that in most provinces being fired with cause is difficult and severance is the norm. Payouts can max out at more than two years of salary in some cases.

Jon Pinkus, an employment lawyer with Samfiru Tumarkin, said there are no set rules on severance compensation, but length of employment matters, ...