Bonus Paid - NDA to Follow? Am I safe to Resign?

[Confused-in-Florida]

Jurisdiction

Florida

I feel stuck, and I'm not sure if I've reached a point where I should contact an attorney regarding my annual performance bonus.

• In Feb this year, I received a job offer from a new employer. Knowing that my current company was planning on paying out my annual performance bonus in March, my future employer agreed that my start date could be after that bonus.
  
  
• All was going well until last Wed., when all eligible employees received an email stating what their bonus amount was, and how it was calculated. In this email it stated that within the criteria to accept the bonus, the employee needs to be employed the day of the payout, and would need to sign an NDA. The email stated that there would be a clawback if the criteria was not me…. And that the NDA would be sent a later day.
  
  
• On Friday, all bonuses were deposited, yet nobody has received the NDA yet.
  
  
• My last day is next Friday, and I would like to put in my notice as early as possible for the benefit of my team, but I'm afraid that they will fire me before I have the opportunity to sign the NDA. OR, not give me the NDA and I end up leaving Friday, and that they'll try to clawback the bonus either way.

Can they claw it back if they're the ones that haven't sent the NDA? Or am I safe to put in my notice, stating that I am glad to sign the NDA if they provide it before I leave?

 I'm accustomed to signing NDAs ahead of bonus or stock payments at other companies, but those usually happen well in advance… This is my first time having an employer deposit the money first. The amount is equivalent to 10% of my base salary, so I don't want to risk having to pay that back.

 

[army judge]

Can they claw it back if they're the ones that haven't sent the NDA?

No human being can honestly answer what another human being is capable of achieving.

However, if you were to delay your departure date by two or three weeks, perhaps a month, your dilemma might no longer exist.

 

[Confused-in-Florida]

No human being can honestly answer what another human being is capable of achieving.

However, if you were to delay your departure date by two or three weeks, perhaps a month, your dilemma might no longer exist.

Thank you for the quick reply! Unfortunately I've stretched my start date out so long, I would lose the other opportunity if I tried to extend further.

 

[adjusterjack]

Can they claw it back if they're the ones that haven't sent the NDA?

Dunno. I'm not clairvoyant.

Or am I safe to put in my notice, stating that I am glad to sign the NDA if they provide it before I leave?

That's what I would do but I can't tell you what you should or shouldn't do. You'll have to figure that out for yourself.

 

[army judge]

Thank you for the quick reply! Unfortunately I've stretched my start date out so long, I would lose the other opportunity if I tried to extend further.

One of the many life lessons taught to me is:
Often the new thing appears more attractive than what we soon discover it to be.

A bird in the hand comes to mind.

Look before you leap, implies investigate, not a mere perusal.