Review and resignation 2

[paultaylor04]

guys, i have another job offer that i have signed but haven't yet given my papers to my current employer. I only have 3 weeks till i start with my new employer and expect a good bonus this time from my current employer

1) usually, i get my review early may but this time it seems delayed for some reason. should i wait till my review comes out before submitting my resignation even if it means i won't be able to give the standard 2 weeks notice? I can always offer some weekend time after leaving if need be

2) would most companies revise the review after knowing you are leaving? i don't want to lose my bonus

thank you all

 

[EBGreen]

I suspect that most companies probably would change your bonus if they knew you were leaving. Since the bonus should be based on your past work, I would not think that it was unethical to wait to inform your current employer that you are leaving. Just realize that no matter how ethically in the right that you may be to wait, doing so will possibly burn bridges with your current employer. You have to weigh what is worth mor to you...potentially losing the bonus or potentially losing contacts.

[red]"... isn't sanity really just a one trick pony anyway?! I mean, all you get is one trick, rational thinking, but when you are good and crazy, oooh, oooh, oooh, the sky is the limit!" - The Tick[/red]

 

[harebrain]

Everything I'm about to say is discordant with my sense of honor, fairplay, and long-held notions. My advice comes from having been laid-off or otherwise relieved five times in the last three years. (I'm on job number six.) It comes from having been denied bonuses because I was "just a temp." It comes from having my "friends" treat me like poison the instant I was called to HR.

Employers today treat employees as disposable objects that can be terminated without notice, for any reason, or for no reason. They have no loyalty to you, and although they'd like you to believe otherwise, they deserve no loyalty from you. The notion that you owe them two-weeks notice is archaic (unless it is required by your employment contract.)

Take your bonus with a smile. As soon afterward as appropriate, give notice. (Remember that giving notice is often rewarded with an invitation to leave immediately.)

As dishonorable as my heart tells me this advice is, it is the result of employer behavior. What goes around comes around.

 

[Golom]

In most companies the 2-weeks notice is part of the terms of your employment ... i.e. it is a legal committment and not just something that would be nice if you did it. Technically at least, you are still an employee of your former company for that two weeks and they could take action to prevent you from taking another job while they still employ you.

When I throw out the term "legal", think of the ancient American curse

May your life be filled with lawyers!

Most employers won't take it that far but its something you need to consider.

 

[dgillz]

Golom,

2 weeks is a courtesy. You are en employee of that company for those 2 weeks IF they keep you and pay you. No one can keep you from taking other employment. Even non-compete contracts are unenforceable unless the company pays you not to compete.

Software Sales, Training, Implementation and Support for Macola, eSynergy, and Crystal Reports

http://www.gainfocus.biz

"What version of URGENT!!! are you using?

 

[SimonDavies]

In all honesty I would just take the bonus and give notice when it hit's your bank (DON'T do it before then as they can stop the payment). If I were you I would also perhaps think about moving the money to a savings account but that's because I am a cynical person and always think the worst of people (it helps).

If you're going to a competitor of theirs then I would have a look at your contract to ensure that they don't have any cooling off period, sometimes you're not allowed to work for a competitor for a period of six months or more.

Also one thing to consider is that if you do decide to just leave (without working the full notice) there are a couple of things they can do, they can with hold salary or even attempt to sue you for breach of contract, in all honesty tho most companies wouldn't bother.

Good luck

SimonD.

The real world is not about exam scores, it's about ability.

 

[kmcferrin]

Regarding the 2-weeks notice, it comes up often in online discussions and you'll always have ten different people telling you ten different things and insisting that they're right and everyone else is wrong. The answer is, it depends.

If you are in the United States the chances are good that you're in a state that has "at-will" employment laws. That means that anyone can quit or be terminated at any time for any legal reason. In those cases the two weeks is merely a courtesy, though many businesses have a policy of penalizing your for not giving two weeks notice (i.e., no positive references, not being eligible for rehire, etc).

If you are not in an "at-will" state, then the two weeks notice maybe required by law on both sides.

Regardless of where you live, you may have an employment contract that stipulates a notice period. In those cases you potentially face penalties that are spelled out in the contract if you fail to give notice. In the united States, the overwhelming majority of people do not have employment contracts.

If you are a member of a union and the business is a union shop you may also be required by the union to provide your employer with a notice period per the collective bargaining agreement. If you fail to meet this requirement you may be penalized by the union, possibly limiting your ability to get hired by union shops in the future.

If you are not in the United States the answer also varies widely. The way I understand it in most European countries most professionals will have an employment contract of some sort that outlines the requirements.

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCSE:Security 2003
MCTS:Active Directory
MCTS:Network Infrastructure
MCTS:Applications Infrastructure

 

[Bandenjamin]

KMC,

Well put have a star!

The OP never states they have a contract so assuming they do not. I would say it greatly depends on the size of the company. I work for a very large company and am aware of a few people who have left who still got their bonus check paid out months after they left (one left in June of 04 and was paid in march of 05). Check with your HR person. If it's a smaller company. Wait it out, get the check. Then advise them of your new opportunity. Offer to put in some nights and weekends if they require it.

Also, have all your stuff ready to go, including a list of passwords and any other things that your successor may require. Some companies will simply escort you to your desk and then out of the building.



--Dan
Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.
Mark Twain

 

[harebrain]

if you do decide to just leave (without working the full notice) there are a couple of things they can do, they can with hold salary

In the United States, that would be illegal. You've earned your wages, you must be paid them on time.

 

[SimonDavies]

In the United States, that would be illegal. You've earned your wages, you must be paid them on time.

OK but with a breached contract would they still be obliged to do so before taking you to court for the breach?

SimonD.

The real world is not about exam scores, it's about ability.

 

[LNBruno]

<shudder>
And the lawyers begin circling....

< M!ke >
[small]Where are we going and why am I in this handbasket?[/small]

 

[kmcferrin]

Simon,

That depends on whether there actually was a contract, and if so, what the terms of the contract are. Usually in an employment contract the penalties for breaking the contract will be outlined in the contract (the same as with most contracts).

________________________________________
CompTIA A+, Network+, Server+, Security+
MCSE:Security 2003
MCTS:Active Directory
MCTS:Network Infrastructure
MCTS:Applications Infrastructure

 

[harebrain]

That depends on whether there actually was a contract, and if so, what the terms of the contract are.

In the US, any contract with illegal terms is unenforceable. (It may be written that just the illegal terms can't be enforced.) It's illegal to withhold wages, for any reason, that have been earned. No ifs, ands, or buts: I earned it, pay me, and on time. (CA puts a more onerous twist on this: if an employer withholds wages, employee sues for wages and is *automatically* awarded punitive damages.)

If an employer has any kind of claim against an employee, it must sue the employee. Otherwise, we're back to indentured servitude and slavery.

 

[Dollie]

If the bonus is not part of your standard compensation, they are in no way obligated to pay it out to you, and yes, they can take it back because of the same reason. Now, if they refuse to give you your paycheck, that's a completely different ballgame. Both situations have happened to me before, and I only won in one of them.

 

[njwcad]

Here in the UK a month is the standard notice period. I recently changed employers and was required to give three months notice!
It is hard staying motivated whilst sitting out your notice for quarter of a year.

Pete.

 

[flapeyre]

It would depend on the individual state's employment laws as to whether the bonus can be taken back by the employer. So, I would ask your friendly neighborhood law firm (no-cost alternative: your state department of labor).

Da mihi sis crustum Etruscum cum omnibus in eo.

 

[chiph]

I recently changed employers and was required to give three months notice!

Three months notice ... or what?

Yes, you'd burn a bridge, but what are they holding over you to force you to stay somewhere you don't want to be?

Chip H.


____________________________________________________________________
www.chipholland.com