velvet handcuffs

Meanings

nounvelvet handcuffs pl (plural only)

idiomaticpluralplural onlyGolden handcuffs: any arrangement designed to provide favorable benefits or pay so as to discourage a participant from choosing to leave it.
The transfer sounded prestigious, but it was definitely a demotion. This was the style of the Brezhnev Politburo: velvet handcuffs, but handcuffs nevertheless.
2011, Christopher Shulgan, The Soviet Ambassador: The Making of the Radical Behind Perestroika
2 more 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.
2000, Jack A. Green, Contact: a Guide to Developing Effective Call Centre Skills
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.
2004 March 13, Billboard, volume 116, number 11, page 11
Synonyms: golden handcuffs
pluralplural onlyUsed other than figuratively or idiomatically: see velvet, handcuffs.

nounGolden handcuffs: any arrangement designed to provide favorable benefits or pay so as to discourage a participant from choosing to leave it.

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Cite this entry

APA

velvet handcuffs. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/velvet%20handcuffs

MLA

“velvet handcuffs.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/velvet%20handcuffs. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “velvet handcuffs,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/velvet%20handcuffs.