In the US the rate a company has to pay for unemployment insurance is linked to the number of former employees that claim unemployment after being laid off from

In the US the rate a company has to pay for unemployment insurance is linked to the number of former employees that claim unemployment after being laid off from the company. Typical rates can range from as low as less than 1% to close to 8% and when calculating the rate a company pays they look at several years of history. The exact mechanics vary by state. So it makes sense that a company might want to discourage people from claiming unemployment because it could effect their longer term costs where as a severance is a one time thing and giving a good reference to a potential new employer is free. http://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de231z.pdf http://www.edd.ca.gov/pdf_pub_ctr/de231z.pdf