The NLRB recently announced that companies will no longer be able to offer severance to laid off employees in exchange for their silence in particular ways. According to the board, broad confidentiality clauses and broad non-disparagement clauses within severance agreements violate sections 7 and 8 of labor law under the National Labor Relations Act. This reverses an earlier decision on the topic from the NLRB under Trump's presidency, and it will apply to all employers except airlines and railroads. As a result, this ruling returns some power to workers at a time when layoffs are on the rise, but it has the potential to be appealed.
See "NLRB rules that employers cannot include broad confidentiality clauses in severance agreements for laid off employees", Jeanne Sahadi, CNN Business, February 23, 2023