The Graceful Departure - Should You Give Your Employer Two Weeks Notice?

Have you ever felt the same way?

Are you ready to resign from your current job? How much notice must you give to your boss?

Generally accepted practices dictate that staffers offer a two-week warning before splitting. In most US states, this is not a legal requirement.

Throughout most of the country, employment at-will laws apply. Employment at-will means any employee who is not bound by a legal contract or collective bargaining agreement (as with a labor union) may get up and walk out at any time and for any reason. Legally, he is free to do so.

However satisfying this dramatic exit may feel at the time, is it really a good idea?

Certainly, the pink slips can fly at a moment's notice. Employers are free to terminate workers, effective immediately, so long as the firings do not breach any employment contracts. (Of course, they are required to pay for accrued vacation days and other earned benefits in such cases.)

What is required of employees who wish to depart?

First, check the company's employee policy manual. This may even be posted on the organization's website. (Ask a friend in the human resources department, if you still are not sure.)

Make every effort to provide two weeks notice with your printed letter of resignation. Offer this in writing in the text of the letter. (One of the reasons employees do write such letters is to date and document this, for their own protection.)

Try to maintain a reasonably courteous professional relationship with your employer, even as you plan to leave. Contacts for job references can be valuable commodities. Also, you can fully expect any prospective future employer to make inquiries about you with your previous supervisors.

Offer to assist with the transfer of assignments (from you to your replacement or successor). By fostering a smooth transition in your department, you will be likely to preserve important contacts, which may be valuable to you for future networking.

Be prepared for your employer to ask you to leave immediately, even if you offer to stay for two weeks. This is particularly true in classified areas and fields dealing with sensitive materials. Company security personnel may even escort you back to your workstation to supervise you, as you clean out your personal space.

In the end, two weeks is not a lifetime commitment, but your long-suffering may reap long-term career benefits.