View Full Version : How did you resign from your job?
Gardenarian
5-14-16, 7:08pm
I am leaving my current job - my last day will be in a month. I'd like to get my letter of resignation in so they can get on with hiring - but on the other hand, I feel there will be some anger about my leaving.
I've only been at this job for a year and a half and haven't become good friends with anyone. Everyone is quite formal here. At my other jobs, I talked with my co-workers and bosses and they were all aware of my plans and supportive of my reasons for moving on - and we remained friends.
Did you schedule a meeting with your boss to tell her you were resigning? I have written a draft resignation letter. I thought I'd meet with my boss, explain that my husband and I have bought a B&B (we have!) and that my last day will be at the end of the current semester, and then give her the letter to give to human resources.
I'm weirdly anxious about this. I would love to hear your experiences.
I tendered my resignation in person, and followed it up with a formal letter. I was very angry at the time, because my manager had coerced me into firing a young analyst who had not met his expectations, even though she had met mine--and she was technically my analyst. But she was socially inept and wasn't good at playing the corporate game, and so even though she worked really hard at her "PIP" (performance improvement program) my boss made me fire her.
So I brought her in to fire her and then told her that I was quitting that day. I didn't draw any parallels, because in truth, it was a number of factors that led to my quitting and hers was just one of them, but I think she got the picture. It just made me so mad that I didn't have any say in the matter, even though it was I who would be working with her and training her, not my boss. Bad management on his part, but in the long run, it worked out great for me.
Anyway, in spite of what I just told you, just keep it dispassionate. I would simply ask for a meeting with your boss, with the resignation letter in hand, and then present it to them at the meeting. There is no reason for you to feel obligated in any way.
iris lilies
5-14-16, 7:54pm
On January 10 I told my boss that my last day at work would be March 31. We had a regular meeting each week and I told her at one of those meetings. While that did not give her a lot of time, I know how she operates, and I know she would wait until the last minute anyway.
That's exactly what happened. She didn't start the process to replace me until one week before I was gone. In our meeting I told her that she could tell whoever she wants my news, but because I think lame duck administrators are ineffective, I suggested she keep it to those who must know. I was pushing to complete three projects and I wanted complete authority to make that work. In a perfect world she would have started the process to replace me and everyone would have known I was leaving due to job advertisements etc, and that would have been fine. But that's not how she works, and I could see no point in everyone knowing I was leaving for weeks when she was taking no action.
The same day I sent email to the head of HR and let him know I was retiring and that news was yet a bit quiet and copied my boss on it. I followed up same day with a hard copy letter to HR.
Its all just business, so give them the favts which are
1. I am quitting
2. My last day of work is XXX
and say something benign such as "thank you for the opportunity" or
"I have enjoyed working here. "
freshstart
5-14-16, 8:06pm
All the jobs I've had I've written the letter of resignation, met with my boss who usually had an idea that I was planning on moving on and was supportive. My 23 yrs of nursing were all for the same corporation so they really were transfers to other depts. I had one bad one. In radiation oncology I worked with one unbelievably bad nurse, the worst I have ever met, it was to the point something had to be done. I went to my supervisor who never did anything about any of the multiple health code violations. Finally, I interviewed for another dept (I was ready to leave, this nurse just made me make the decision faster) and got that job. I went in to tell the supervisor and the director, both of whom had received an email from me listing all the horrendous things I had seen and that if there was not a correction plan, I would be calling the dept of health. Oh, they were horrible to me, it was bloody and I even had the HR employee rep with me. They called me Hitler. So I said, "surely, we can't have Hitler working here so today is my last day." Which pissed them off more, they called hospice and tried to block me starting there the very next day. They knew the entire story, including the Hitler part and demanded that I start the next day. Hospice took a real chance on me with that background! that was the first and only time I ever complained about a bad nurse, I really felt poor outcomes were occurring with potential for more because of her poor practice. That was my most risky quitting. The nurse had to leave radiation and got shuffled to another hospice as a nurse who made phone calls to MD offices, no patient care. So that worked out.
I would do exactly what Catherine said
I've never given more than a 2 week notice, usually I've asked to speak with the boss, handing him/her a written resignation letter that says basically nothing outside of my last day.
Congrats on buying the B+B- can't wait to hear about your adventures!!!!
iris lilies
5-14-16, 8:27pm
It was funny that I telegraphed my retirement by blurting out stuff at administrative meetingsfor several years before I left, yet everyone was still surprised!
About eight years ago it was announced at One of those meetings that we had a new program allowing retired employees to be covered by medical insurance if they paid the entire premium. I blurted out "yay, hey that's my ticket out of here!"ha ha ha.
A few years before I retired someone at an administrative meeting talked about the rule for pension which was called the rule of 85. That meant a combination of age and years of service had to be met before a pensin was available.I blurted "oh no! I thought it was the rule of 80!" And I laid my head down on the table in faux sorrow at the thought of 2.5 more years of servitude. Ha ha a little drama for my colleagues.
And then more recently during an admin meeting it was said in a taciturn way that we are no longer allowing retirees to get medical insurance outside of COBRA mandated rules. When I asked about it the head of HR tamped that discussion down. Later he invited me into his office to explain the politics of that decision which was the usual bullshit. I told him " dude I was counting on that!"
So it should not have come as a surprise when I retired but everyone was surprised. I was the second person to retire out of a group of 10 people who are all about my age within a five year range. They all need to retire.
freshstart
5-14-16, 9:14pm
my company promised retirees who had 20 yrs in that they could buy health insurance at the group rate, higher than the employee rate but still a huge benefit. So at 20 yrs, I asked, "you are the only person who asked about that. We are stopping that plan." How could I be the only employee who was upset about losing that benefit? Sometimes I think I worked with the least financially savvy people on the planet.
When I left my last job, I told my supervisor during one of my monthly critique performance review sessions. She explained the arcane way HR was conducting performance appraisals that year (it changed every year even though the result for the employee was always the same) and asked me to give her a timetable of when I would have my draft and the final ready. I told her I wasn't planning on getting it done because I was quitting. We negotiated an end date and the tasks I was going to have done by then and I sent a sparsely-worded and official email of resignation to HR (cc her) a couple of days later.
Short and simple. My boss knew why I left. It became even more apparent when they had to hire two people to do everything I was responsible for. My official line was that I had a golden opportunity to start my own business and most people there still believe that to be true.
I also declined an exit interview. My experience with them is that they are easy ways to cook one's own goose (legacy and future) and the organization really isn't interested in the feedback anyway because they had plenty of opportunities to hear it while I was working there.
flowerseverywhere
5-14-16, 9:56pm
I asked to meet with the boss Friday afternoon and gave her a two week notice. It only said please accept my resignation as of date. I gave a vague explanation. The company had gone through two brutal layoffs targeting older people (some were within two years of the 85 retirement number and were going to take a huge hit by not qualifying for health insurance ) and I had become FI and only wanted to pad the bank a little on a part time income. So I got a part time position and resigned.
As I was working my two weeks the boss who was ruthless who had been transferred to "clean house" was laid off. He was in his early fifties with two kids in college and two in high school and wife who never worked. It was a cruel reminder of how companies can operate.
iris lilies
5-14-16, 10:06pm
my company promised retirees who had 20 yrs in that they could buy health insurance at the group rate, higher than the employee rate but still a huge benefit. So at 20 yrs, I asked, "you are the only person who asked about that. We are stopping that plan." How could I be the only employee who was upset about losing that benefit? Sometimes I think I worked with the least financially savvy people on the planet.
I know! The HR manager told me that hardly any retirees took advantage of the group health rate. So maybe everyone was pulling Medicare, but I dont think so, and this was before the days of Obamacare.
iris lilies
5-14-16, 10:21pm
I agree that an exit interview, the standard kind, would have been useless.
I did ask for a meeting with my boss and the Exexutive Director to go over outstanding work issues in my department. They can do as they like with that info.
A long long looooooooooong term employee finally retired giving one week's notice. By then I was so tired of her poor performance that I would have told her not necessary to give notice, lets make today your last day. Except that we were in the midst of performance reviews and I would have had to pull them out of my ass for her staff, yet another thing for her work unit that I had to do that she should have been doing. so I told her to turn them into me by X day. And she did! I was halfway expecting her to pretty much ignore my deadline.
On a related note, it is funny to see some people's expectatins of the celebration they are owed when they retire. As I was leaving I heard that another employee was planning her own retirement party that included--get ready for this--a choir. Yes, she was having a choir sing.
Oooooo---kay.
Miss Cellane
5-15-16, 7:54am
Is there any chance you will be told to leave immediately upon tendering your resignation? If so, will that impede your plans?
All that is required in the US, by custom, is two weeks notice. If your immediate boss is going to be angry with you, do you want to deal with that for a month?
I'd do the two weeks notice. Ask for a meeting, announce you are leaving, hand over the letter. There's no real need to explain why you are leaving--if you had a cordial relationship with your boss, sure, but it sounds as if you don't. If the boss asks why you are leaving, then I'd explain.
It really doesn't matter if your boss gets upset, angry, whatever. People leave jobs all the time, and managers need to be prepared for that.
And then there's a friend of mine who tried for over a month to resign from her part-time, retail job. She went to the office in the store several times, but there was never a manager available to meet with her--or so she was told. And the admin assistant refused to take her letter of resignation, claiming that it had to be given to a manager--again, I don't quite believe that. I told my friend to go to the office one last time, drop the letter on the admin's desk, and just say, "I'm leaving. My last day is April 10. It's all in the letter. Thanks," and just walk out. They can't refuse to accept your resignation, however hard they may try.
I always had a scripted reason that I used with everyone who asked. It was true but it wasn't the whole story. I stuck to it no matter what. People love to dig for gossip. I have two weeks notice most times, with a month twice. Neither time did the month make any difference. They didn't plan ahead for my replacement no matter the time I gave. I always had a simple letter typed up which I handed to my boss as I verbally stated that I would be resigning effective on a certain date. I never changed my mind when they tried to talk me out of it. I always had another job lined up before I left.
I must be very different because I've given verbal notice to my department that I'm retiring in May next year.
My reasons were: I've been there 20+ years and it's a niche position which will have to be filled by someone outside the company; budget planning is this summer for headcount and other costs for next calendar year, and I wanted them to be prepared; my supervisor and co-workers and even the VP are all very good, very smart people to work with and I didn't want any surprises for them because they count on my work to support theirs; our large corp. has a bureaucratic process and certain HR rules that have to be followed so there will be plenty of time to do that right; and finally, the new person gets to overlap their time with me for about a month so there will be plenty of training time for a smooth transfer.
It's certainly more time than I'd given in prior jobs, but I also have another motive about not wanting my 2 decades of work to be lost just because of a lack of timing to plan.
Williamsmith
5-15-16, 9:21am
I think most people don't realize how little they matter to the company they work for. Especially if it is a part time, no benefit job. Most HR departments feel they can replace you with a qualified person in less time than it takes to process you out. They only reason anybody gives two weeks is so that any future employer won't get a bad report from the past employer. Union contracts make the process carry less uncertainty. Which is another reason employers hate them.
I think most people don't realize how little they matter to the company they work for.
Two points on that:
a) The 1st market research company I worked for before it got gobbled up like PacMan by bigger and bigger companies felt like family to me, and I had an emotional attachment to it. They were loyal and kind. My boss paid for an airline ticket to the UK for a coworker whose dad took ill suddenly. She also, at company expense, had another coworker airlifted to a speciality hospital when he became suddenly ill with a strange and unpredictable disease and she kept his position open for almost a year while he recovered. The vibe felt sincerely more family-oriented than other companies I've worked for, so I think there are rare instances in which companies (probably all small ones) really do care about their employees.
b) When DH had about 7 employees, he was convinced that they were his "friends" and therefore he was always completely sideswiped when someone would resign or talk of resigning. I couldn't get it through his head that they worked for him because they need money--that they are looking for a job, not a friend. It wasn't personal!!! He had such a hard time understanding that, but I think he eventually did.
...
On a related note, it is funny to see some people's expectatins of the celebration they are owed when they retire. As I was leaving I heard that another employee was planning her own retirement party that included--get ready for this--a choir. Yes, she was having a choir sing.
Oooooo---kay.
I can't think of many occasions more deserving of a big party than retiring from paid work--especially a HSSJ! I bet your co-worker hired the choir to replicate the sound of angels singing. :laff:
I would have loved a party. Sadly, I just bought an airline bottle of some kind of celebratory booze, toasted myself and turned in early.
iris lilies
5-15-16, 10:55am
A month's notice is usual and expected in the OP's professional role. i dont think it is excessive. Of course, it will take the wheels of academia months to grind out a replacement, no doubt.
OP, Is your position full time or part time? Seems like it is part time.
When we were moving to CA I knew in June that I would be quitting in December but it didn't even occur to me that I should give more than 2 weeks notice.
I agree with the others who have said to write a brief letter that just states that you are resigning, and your last day. Possibly thank them for the opportunity. Schedule a meeting with boss, hand over letter and tell them what it says.
One of my objectives this year (as for many of the people at my level of management) is to develop a succession plan. We have a fairly high proportion of employees at or within five years of retirement, so it's become a strategic issue for us. It is an interesting and sometimes challenging process attempting to document what I know, what I do and what I see as the upcoming threats and opportunities for my function.
I'm probably 2-4 years from pulling the trigger, and have made no particular secret about it. I plan on writing the usual short resignation letter, with the notice time based on my family situation and follow-on employment prospects at the time. We do exit interviews here, but I have no particular axes to grind or supervisors to excoriate, so I see that as pretty much a technical exercise. I'm the guy who exercises the budgetary controls, reviews expenses and investigates cash shortages so I've been critiqued in more than one of those for my lack of empathy and creativity in preventing people from spending money they don't have, so it may be an interesting experience to be on the other side.
I actually have someone in mind to replace me, and she is currently participating in a formal mentoring program our organization started a year or two ago. I like and respect her, and have no interest in the apre moi le deluge attitude some of our more embittered employees take. My employer has generally been fair if demanding during my years here, so I'm not planning on some dramatic exit.
ApatheticNoMore
5-15-16, 12:10pm
When we were moving to CA I knew in June that I would be quitting in December but it didn't even occur to me that I should give more than 2 weeks notice.
yep, I'd give two weeks notice. that's it. I'd send a letter of resignation saying little more than I'm leaving, maybe little white lie and say I enjoyed my time there and so on (yea right, as if) and move on.
1. Give only the required length of notice to keep your resume' clean and a job inquiry clean.
2. You can hand her/him a letter and sit quietly while she/he reads it.
3. You can walk in and state your resignation with a final work date. Simple thank you for the oppportunity.
4. You owe no explanation. You owe nothing of your future plans.
I am speaking as a supervisor of 24years. I've seen too many colleagues burned by giving extra working time, extra information and when face to face, people seem compelled to offer lots of information.
And honestly, I've had many people leave a sealed envelope on my desk for me to 'discover'. No way of resignation is easy. Each has done what is easiest for them.
Oh, the actual question: I faxed my resignation while out of state on a personal trip. I had to give 30d notice and I received the job offer on day 1 of an 8 day vacation. I was so sick and tired of my boss I didn't care what she thought. And I'd worked for that company for 20 years. The final days I worked were quite unpleasant except for my VP who asked me to please call her directly if I decided my new job wasnt' a fit. I really appreciated her civility.
Gardenarian
5-16-16, 1:09am
I am a part-time academic. The colleges and universities really expect you to give your heart and soul to them, and there is often grave disappointment when someone leaves (no matter how trivial their job.) Much head-shaking, muttering, and gossip.
My workplace is rather tense and I am isolated in my job. I have probably spoken to my boss for no more than 20 minutes total since my first week. It's just uncomfortable; she is virtually a stranger.
As my position is part-time, and does not include summer, I think giving 2 weeks notice is adequate (they do have until September to replace me.) I would like to spend as little time there as a lame duck as possible
As soon as I have told my boss, I will let the 2 people I have become somewhat friendly with know. Better that they don't hear it elsewhere.
So I'll be giving notice in 2 weeks. I'll let you all know how it goes.
Thanks for the advice and experience!
I was kind of hoping for an exit interview; no one has asked for my advice about a single thing, ever.
Weird thing: the closer I get to quitting, the more negative I feel about the organization and my job. It's not a bad place - it seems I need to feel like it is really awful in order to let go. I've seem to have trouble walking away from something that is just 'okay' - I need to demonize it. There's a lesson there.
Teacher Terry
5-16-16, 12:59pm
So is the B and B you bought in Ashland also? We were there once and it is such a cool little town. Your work place sounds very strange.
1. Give only the required length of notice to keep your resume' clean and a job inquiry clean.
2. You can hand her/him a letter and sit quietly while she/he reads it.
3. You can walk in and state your resignation with a final work date. Simple thank you for the oppportunity.
4. You owe no explanation. You owe nothing of your future plans.
I am speaking as a supervisor of 24years. I've seen too many colleagues burned by giving extra working time, extra information and when face to face, people seem compelled to offer lots of information.
And honestly, I've had many people leave a sealed envelope on my desk for me to 'discover'. No way of resignation is easy. Each has done what is easiest for them.
Oh, the actual question: I faxed my resignation while out of state on a personal trip. I had to give 30d notice and I received the job offer on day 1 of an 8 day vacation. I was so sick and tired of my boss I didn't care what she thought. And I'd worked for that company for 20 years. The final days I worked were quite unpleasant except for my VP who asked me to please call her directly if I decided my new job wasnt' a fit. I really appreciated her civility.
this is good advice.
Gardenarian
5-21-16, 6:50pm
Well, I haven't seen my boss for two weeks (I work primarily weekends, but she hasn't been here the weekdays I work either.) So I wrote a simple letter and put it in her mailbox with a note, saying I had hoped to hand it to her in person, but...
So I'll get the reaction when I do - hoping for the best!
Well, I haven't seen my boss for two weeks (I work primarily weekends, but she hasn't been here the weekdays I work either.) So I wrote a simple letter and put it in her mailbox with a note, saying I had hoped to hand it to her in person, but...
So I'll get the reaction when I do - hoping for the best!
Great job! Enjoy these last 2 weeks as you can and relish your new-found freedom for your next chapter.:cool:
Gardenarian
5-25-16, 2:10am
Thanks Gardnr.! I haven't heard a thing yet and am feeling antsy about it. Did she not get the letter? Or is this so trivial that she doesn't feel a need to respond?
June 10 is my last day. Party afterwards!
iris lilies
5-25-16, 8:21am
Thanks Gardnr.! I haven't heard a thing yet and am feeling antsy about it. Did she not get the letter? Or is this so trivial that she doesn't feel a need to respond?
June 10 is my last day. Party afterwards!
Im sure she will stop by one of these days to say her goodbyes and farewells.
It's not that it is trivial, its that there is no timeline for her to talk to you because its a one way communication: you are leaving, its a done deal.
edited to add: if i was the supervisor n a position where I seldom see employees, I would send you an email message.
If you haven't heard from her by June 3, I'd do a quick check-in. "Hello. i haven't heard from you and wanted to check-in to be sure you received my letter of resignation delivered on May x.
This is for you, not for her.
crunchycon
6-3-16, 10:17am
I let my boss know in person (actually, via phone call as I was in a different office and state) and gave several weeks notice, as my job was somewhat specialized and they needed time to decide what to do with my headcount. I didn't need to do this much notice, but I'd been there a long time and had a good relationship with my boss and other business partners. As it was the partial truth, I let them know my resignation was for family reasons and didn't go into a ton of detail. I followed this up with a more formal written communication.
BTW, my company also had retiree health insurance, but it was massively high in premium for under-65 employees, so I had to look elsewhere for my benefits. If your retiree benefits were reasonable, it is surprising that no one looked into them.
I wrote out my letter, scheduled a meeting with my boss, was very direct, gave her the date of my last day and moved on. You don't really need to explain yourself. They are going to be ticked either way. Enjoy your new adventures!
I put a letter of resignation on my boss's desk, as I'd arrived at work before she did that morning. I seriously hoped she'd say, "great, let's make today your last day," as it was for a company that probably didn't want employees with one foot out the door on the premises. Unfortunately for me, she asked me to work another two or three weeks so she could keep the month's work schedule intact! Ugh. But I did it, so I was professional about it and left in good standing and didn't leave anyone in the lurch.
It is sometimes REALLY hard to treat others with more respect and professionalism than one has received in return, but I'm glad I behaved as I did.
Chicken lady
6-4-16, 8:40pm
I've never had a career, only jobs.
First post college job I got fired.
Second one I had significant personal issues with the boss and gave two weeks verbally willing to walk on the spot. He took the two weeks and then called me to come get my paycheck - refused to spend a stamp on me.
Third job we had trouble collecting our pay checks. I was out on unpaid "maternity leave" and when my last check finally came two months late I cashed it, walked in, and told them I was never coming back.
4th job I liked, so knowing everything would be much smoother if I trained my replacement for them, I gave three months notice still verbally, and agreed to be contacted any time if I hadn't left town. (Which I did about three months after my last day). They threw me a really nice party. My feelings were a little hurt that my replacement was paid much better than I was, but it might have been hard to find someone, and I had never thought to ask for a raise.
this job I love. Unless something changes, If I ever decide to leave it (I will if I live long enough) I'll give them plenty of warning and help out any way they ask on the transition.
Gardenarian
6-7-16, 4:14pm
Update: everything went very well with my boss and the library director. One of my colleagues cried a little, which touched me.
I feel good about it all around - no guilt, no regrets - though I'm slightly uneasy about my last day.
I've worked several of shifts as a sub at the public library (also a 10 minute walk) and found it a lot of fun. It pays a bit less, but I'm okay with that.
As of Friday, I'm a free agent!
Update: everything went very well with my boss and the library director. One of my colleagues cried a little, which touched me.
I feel good about it all around - no guilt, no regrets - though I'm slightly uneasy about my last day.
I've worked several of shifts as a sub at the public library (also a 10 minute walk) and found it a lot of fun. It pays a bit less, but I'm okay with that.
As of Friday, I'm a free agent!
So cool! :)
Update: everything went very well with my boss and the library director. One of my colleagues cried a little, which touched me.
I feel good about it all around - no guilt, no regrets - though I'm slightly uneasy about my last day.
I've worked several of shifts as a sub at the public library (also a 10 minute walk) and found it a lot of fun. It pays a bit less, but I'm okay with that.
As of Friday, I'm a free agent!
Wow!!!! Congratulations! Friday morning, do what I did when I quit my job and just jump up and down for joy when you get out of bed! Feels great!
Gardenarian
6-7-16, 6:39pm
I will! Jump up and down :)
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