Conference 7.286::digital

    I suspect what it means is that you are still an 'employee' for the
    nine weeks that you receive your pay, before getting into any of the
    longevity bonus.  As such, during those nine weeks working for another
    employer would be a direct violation of your employee agreement where
    you agree not to moonlight in such a manner as to be competing with
    Digital.
    
    Bob

    re: .1
    
    Dunno. I recall a note in one of the many, long TFSO-related strings
    wherein the noter checked it out with HR, and HR said you can take a
    job during the 9-week period without jeopordizing your "package."
    
    re: .0
    
    Digital's standard Ts&Cs for placing consultants at a customer site say
    that the customer must pay Digital hefty penalties (3 months of the
    rate? 6 months of the rate? where rate=$100-$200/hour) if they hire or
    contract with their Digital consultant. In 11 years, I've never seen
    this enforced. But, that doesn't mean it can't be. 
    
    Maybe that's the source of this. Or, perhaps more likely, the TFSO
    agreement says you can't do this.

    To reply to the base question, what are the rights of the ex-Digit,
    Digital is bound by the laws of the areas in which it does business and
    neither makes nor enforces those laws.
    
    An ex-Digit is an EX Digit and has whatever personal and human rights
    his country allows, so...
    
    1)  Digital may put limitations on the payment of any portion of a
        severance package which is beyond the local legal requirements. 
       
    2)  Digital would not likely attempt to enforce any no-hire clause
        possibly applicable to ex-Digits as the cost of interference with
        an individual's right to work would probably grossly exceed the
        amounts recoverable from any contractual penalty clause between
        Digital and its customer(s).  
    
    3)  Enforcment of the 'negatives' in contracts is typically (with 
        respect to North American business in general and not specifically
        with respect to Digital) done only in the cases of extreme abuse
        as it doesn't do a lot for the customer-supplier relationship.
    
      (The above quasi-legal opinions are worth what I charged for them.)
    
    
    Personally I'd take the first good job that comes along, hoping it
    comes before and exceeds the next mortgage payment.
    
    
    Don
    

During my discussion with HR on Monday, the statement was made that "you (the
TSFO'ed) can accept a job right this very minute and start work, WITHOUT 
jeopordizing your 'package' (lump sum)".

People in the room that heard that message believed the HR rep.  There were
no BUTs to the statement.

However, I must point out that the context of the statement was NOT about
working for one of our customers, but was just generally about taking a new
job.  How you could make such a statement and then tack on a big BUT to say
"BUT not with someone you've ever worked with as a Digital employee" doesn't
make sense.

When I asked later about doing some consulting with one of Digital's customers
the word was "that could be a conflict of interest".

It is all kind of confusing, but as one of the previous replies said, if the
money gain to you isn't so great maybe Digital won't come after you.  I would
recommend to avoid "conflict" during the 9 + 1 (notification) week period.
You CAN be fired during that period and receive no package.

/Marty

    As my last reply in a Digital notesfile, I can shed some light on this
    subject (I'm TSFOed as of Friday).
    
    In the TSFO package, there is an announcement that "... APS/DCS is
    transitioning to has an increasingly variable workforce."  Digital has
    an arrangement with The Computer Merchant (Norwell, MA) that grants
    them a "... limited exception to the purchasing rule which prohibits
    such employment on Digital contracts for a one year period.  The
    exception is limited to contracts with *THIS* vendor for a *LIMITED* number
    of contracts."
    
    I was told by the Customer Services Program Manager that the particular
    customer I have been working for is on the approved contracts list.  If
    I go back to work on this project as a Computer Merchant employee, my
    package is not jeopardized.  However, if I was to work at this customer
    site as an employee of another consulting firm -- I could loose the
    package.
     
    I am getting my situation clarified in writing so this verbal contract
    won't get "misplaced."
    
    Best regards to all of you, and best wishes for Digital's future.
    
    --Bruce Mannon