Except it's not "for life". It's until they feel free to lift the non-compete. My guess is that most information you take from a company is irrelevant in a couple years. Maybe 5 tops?

Plus it'd almost certainly end with zero notice. You'd get a email saying "you're free to go". Suddenly. After say 26 months.

So it's not like a "pension for life" - just a gap in your employment history.

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jaggederest 10 hours ago | parent [-]

Oh no, ah jeez, slightly more than one year of income for zero effort, darn.

Any employment gap can be easily explained by saying "I was under a non-compete and being paid garden leave while working on personal projects to keep my skills fresh". It's very common in e.g. the finance world, I believe.

	▲	bruce511 3 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		I've no argument with the severance cash, I'm saying that you can't just revert to a hobby because you have an "income for life." The uncertainty means you're still out on the job market looking for a real job.
	▲	ghaff 6 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		I suspect most people with that sentiment don't have a mortgage/kids/etc. I have known youngish people who got a very nice severance package back in the day and essentially took a 6 month sabbatical. I don't really see a problem for getting future jobs so much. But it is a loss of significant income (assuming you were well-compensated even if you're still being paid something) and may not have great alternatives for income though, if you're in the position to do so, you can of course travel or whatever.