lay off

You should not sign the release if you plan to go forward with a legal action to contest your layoff. But, of course, the risk you would be taking is that you lose the offer for two week's pay. A lawyer will not be able to tell you that you are certain to get more if you press on; he or she will only be able to tell you whether that is a possibility, and perhaps some factors that would influence your chances of prevailing or obtaining a better settlement and the potential ranges of a settlement or judgment. You would then decide whether you want to give up the sure and certain payment being offered in exchance for the speculative endeavor the attorney explains about your legal options. That being said, I can only give you this general guidance because there is not enough here to give any information about potential legal claims. Some relevant questions an attorney would want to discuss with you include: Are you in a union? Is there any evidence that the decision is influenced by race, sex, disability, or some other prohibited factor? Are there any civil service laws that prohibit the employer's actions? Were you in a probationary period? All of these affect whether there could be any viable legal options. Hope this helps. -Don

I will just add this little bit to the previous excellent advice: because you were working for a muncipal agency and your position was eliminated, it sounds like there was no discrimination involved. Unless you have reason to believe that you have some contractual rights that entitle you to more than the extra two weeks pay, or that your job elimination had anything to do with discrimination based on race, gender, disability, or other protected status, then take the extra two week's pay. If you are the least bit unsure, then you should definitely get a consultation from a California employment lawyer.