Meaning of velvet handcuffs | Babel Free

Definitions

1. Golden handcuffs: any arrangement designed to provide favorable benefits or pay so as to discourage a participant from choosing to leave it.
   idiomatic, plural, plural-only
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see velvet, handcuffs.
   plural, plural-only

Examples

“If turnover is low, is this for good reasons or because staff have no other opportunities or are trapped by "velvet handcuffs" — are dissatisfied and would like to leave, but the money is too good.”

“Inevitably, it turns out, singing other people's songs or having to collaborate with one's bandmates can sometimes feel like a prison sentence, albeit one with velvet handcuffs and minimum security.”

“The transfer sounded prestigious, but it was definitely a demotion. This was the style of the Brezhnev Politburo: velvet handcuffs, but handcuffs nevertheless.”

CEFR level