Proper etiquette when quitting (employee, sample, 401k, percentage)

[rickmahorn]

I have a few questions regarding quitting a job. I am going to be giving my employer (have been there 2 years since graduation of college) 3 weeks notice of my resignation in about a week. The main reason I am leaving is I am ready to live in a huge city rather than the smallish one like I do right now. It should also be noted that I am really not happy with my current job: socially it sucks (there's nobody even close to my age, i'm the only one who consistently goes into the office); i am not challenged at all and do not feel as if i'm growing within my field (web/graphic design); i work in a stuffy environment that is completely uncreative; and i am underpaid given my experience and abilities.



My questions are as follows:
1) Is giving them 3 weeks notice too much?
I am an at-will employee, but I know they are going to be completely screwed for a little while after I quit. I am the only person who has any creative ability or technical skills in that company. I am currently doing all of the work on about 10 different projects and am the manager on many of those. Or should I not worry about that and just give them 2 weeks? It is their fault for not having any sort of backup plan or sub-contractors available.

2) Should I mention some of the reasons I was unhappy with this job? Or should I just give them the 'I just want to live in a big city' reason? Also, I am going to be traveling for 3 months right after I quit this job, so there's absolutely no way they are going to be able convince me to stay were I to not tell them I am unhappy with the job.

3) Anything special I need to shore up with them before I leave? For instance: 401k, insurance, work forms?

Sorry for the length, just looking for some perspective from those with experience. This is my first full-time job and want to go about it the right way, but at the same time not short-change myself. Thanks!

[Magnolia Bloom]

Put together a nice, PC resignation letter. Watch what you say in the exit interview- they don't really care and you will want a reference from them.

I never would have said this five years ago, and if I am jaded, others, please comment...just my experience of late.

[ogplife]

Originally Posted by HIF

Put together a nice, PC resignation letter. Watch what you say in the exit interview- they don't really care and you will want a reference from them.

I never would have said this five years ago, and if I am jaded, others, please comment...just my experience of late.

This is good advice. Give them the 3 weeks notice. Exit interview is not the time to vent. Smile shake hands and play the game. Leave in peace. You have already won. Good luck!

[sterlinggirl]

It depends......are the owners caring people that help employees grow and transition them to better jobs, or do they treat them as if they're expendible? For a good employer, I feel a personal duty to take care of them as well as they've taken care of me. Since you had to ask about the three weeks, I'm assuming they aren't a great employer.

At will employment means that they won't give you adequate notice, and you are not required to do so either. If they haven't given you a competitive wage or planned ahead, their workload isn't your problem..... If you have time before leaving, point out several weeks ahead of time that they need to do some cross training so you can take some time off.

I would hand them a resignation letter at the end of the workday, offering to negotiate for additional time as needed, with a reference letter included in the terms of the deal. For the additional time, you can probably ask for double your previous hourly rate, but will need something to back you up. Local freelance or temp rates would make a good starting point.

They may be upset, but they will most likely give you everything you ask for.

[Huckleberry3911948]

IMHO with all due respect your post shows a lil attitude
however "at will" means
no mercy is expected and none will be given.
do as you will, what do you care? they don't.

[sterlinggirl]

Just a little?

[maf763]

I don't sense any attitude from the OP. It's a clear, honest appraisal of his situation (I assume it's a he and not the former Piston bad boy), not asking for any special treatment.

Three weeks is plenty of notice - let them worry about replacing you. If they ask, I wouldn't think it would be inappropriate to say that at your stage of your career you want an opportunity to develop more of your skills - just don't make it sound like a criticism of the company. And I would follow up on retirement and definitely insurance, as it sounds like you don't have a new position lined up yet.

[micrguy]

Make sure that you have your things in order and a list of all of your contacts before you give them notice. A lot of employers do not want employees who are leaving to stick around. I gave one employer my two weeks notice and I had 15 minutes to clean up my desk of my personal possessions and I was not allowed to touch my computer. Some employers look at people who are leaving as a potential "cancer" that will spread the idea that there is something better out there.

So now whenever I leave a company, I spend at least a week making sure that I have any email addresses that I may need, samples of my work, documentation of my sales and anything else that will help me in the future. Make sure that you have money saved in the bank, do not count on the last 2-3 weeks of a paycheck in case your employer makes you leave on the day you put in your notice.

I have been on the employer side of this as well and if somebody quits I want them out of there as soon as possible. Why pay someone who is counting down the hours until they are gone. Plus trying to keep company morale up with an employee who is leaving is tough. If someone gives their notice I would send them home and tell them to take a couple of vacation days, then come back for a final interview and watch them clean out their workspace.

[mbuszu]

I'd give them as much notice as you need to, and no more. They may ask you to stay longer, until they feel comfortable with you having transitioned everything to another employee or to wrap up loose ends for anything you've been working on. The reality is that you don't owe them anything. It is customary to provide 2 weeks notice if you want good references for future jobs. Providing anything more than that is just a choice you'll have to make based upon when you are starting your next job and what your own financial needs are. From experience I can tell you that it is nice to leave 2 weeks (at least) between the final date of one job and the start date of another... it's 2 weeks of vacation you can use to get yourself recharged and ready for the new gig.

Lastly, I hope you have another position lined up in the big city you are planning on moving to. If not, then why not hold off completely on resigning until you get an offer to accept. This is not an economy within which to just get up and leave a company without something else lined up. One additional thought is that perhaps you should go to your current manager and ask for a raise of a particular dollar amount or percentage amount (and provide all the rationale for doing so) before you start your job search. It's just a thought. If you don't ask you will not receive, and squeaky wheel gets the oil are indeed truisms for most companies. You might still not be happy at the job, but at least you could make more money and buy yourself some more time and happiness while you are seeking another.

[mbuszu]

Originally Posted by micrguy

Make sure that you have your things in order and a list of all of your contacts before you give them notice. A lot of employers do not want employees who are leaving to stick around. I gave one employer my two weeks notice and I had 15 minutes to clean up my desk of my personal possessions and I was not allowed to touch my computer. Some employers look at people who are leaving as a potential "cancer" that will spread the idea that there is something better out there.

So now whenever I leave a company, I spend at least a week making sure that I have any email addresses that I may need, samples of my work, documentation of my sales and anything else that will help me in the future. Make sure that you have money saved in the bank, do not count on the last 2-3 weeks of a paycheck in case your employer makes you leave on the day you put in your notice.

I have been on the employer side of this as well and if somebody quits I want them out of there as soon as possible. Why pay someone who is counting down the hours until they are gone. Plus trying to keep company morale up with an employee who is leaving is tough. If someone gives their notice I would send them home and tell them to take a couple of vacation days, then come back for a final interview and watch them clean out their workspace.

LOL - both the example you gave of an employer of yours, as well as your own feelings about people leaving when you were the employer are rather dysfunctional. No offense meant, I'm just being a straight-shooter here. 15 minutes to clear your desk and leave! That is bizarre and the employer-employee relationship you must've had with that person had to be pretty sad. I've always become friends with my managers and left at rather appropriate times for other opportunities which my managers always related to... I wouldn't expect a friend to do what you described having happened. I suppose the situation wouldn't be nearly as dysfunctionally-sounding if the jobs were minimum wage and the owners of the company didn't care at all about their employees, but you didn't mention those details. The act of people leaving a company isn't "cancerous" - for companies run professionally, there's usually personal and justifiable reasons for people to leave. If a manager or business owner doesn't see or understand that then their perception must really myopic.