Can I just clean out my desk and disappear?

Flickr user quinn.anya

(MoneyWatch) Dear Evil HR Lady,

I have tendered my resignation. The issue is that the notice period required by the company is one month. I would like to leave earlier, but I'm afraid the company will not let me do so. Should i just clear out my desk and leave? I already got a job offer and am ready to move on. I do not think I will use my current employer as a reference. Please advise.

Unless you've signed some sort of contract, you're under no legal obligation to give even 5 minutes notice. You could certainly just pack up and leave.

But that would be really stupid.

I do understand the temptation. Once you've decided to leave a company and have even found a new job, all the reasons you chose to move on keep coming back to you. Formerly mild workplace annoyances start to grate on your every nerve. But strolling out the door is a bad idea. Here's why:

You could be giving up benefits. Many companies have a required notice period, but in order to enforce it they have some sort of carrot or stick. Usually, if you don't work through the notice period you'll give up vacation, for instance. Check your employee handbook to see what the consequences are. (State laws may vary as well.)

You don't get to choose your references. I know, I know, you always provide the names and phone numbers of three people who think you are fabulous. And it's certainly normal to withhold the name of someone at your current position because you don't want people to know you're looking. But when you apply for your next job, there is a high probability that the recruiter will call THIS company looking for a reference. Think they won't find your manager? LinkedIn makes that super easy. And it doesn't even matter if you have a page.

You're burning bridges. Fine, you may figure that you'll never work at your company again. But you are highly likely to run into a former coworker or supervisor in the future. And what will they remember? How you just cleaned out your desk and disappeared. It will be the story they tell when someone asks if they know you. And you know what? No job for you.

This is immaturity at its finest. I know you're a university student. (Yes, even though your email contained only a first name, the address itself gave me your Facebook page. Think a recruiter won't do that? Ha! Your page is locked down very nicely, by the way.) This is the kind of behavior that your friends may think is acceptable, but in the grown-up world is not.

If you don't want to fulfill the notice period, be honest. If the new job won't wait for you, then walk into your boss's office, apologize, and tell her that while you wish you could work the entire month you will only be able to work two weeks (or whatever). Then ask her what you can do to ease the transition. This helps maintain your reputation and still gets you out earlier.

The reality is that each job isn't an independent bubble. Sneaking out the door on one lame job may come back to bite you in the future. And let's face it, finding a new job is difficult enough without having to overcome a bad reference.

Have a workplace dilemma? Send your question to [e-mail].

Photo courtesy of Flickr user quinn.anya

[sjclynn]

I also would take a look at what the company does on the flip side. When they let someone go for anything other than cause, how much severance time do they give? It seems like the companies that want the long notice feel generous telling someone that they are laying off, "Hey, we will pay you to the end of the day." I wouldn't feel guilty affording them the same consideration that they would give to you.

[lelnet]

A month's notice is an excessive requirement for the sort of job one would give a university student. I could see it as more reasonable for a more senior position with a lot of critical-path dependencies and a greater difficulty in finding a qualified replacement, or for a contractor who decides to leave before the conclusion of the project he was brought in for, but not for a low-level FTE.

Moreover, any new employer you'd actually _want_ to work for is going to be willing to give you two weeks to wrap up your current position, but most will (justifiably, IMO) balk at waiting a month after they make an offer, absent those same sorts of extenuating circumstances.

I'd suggest a middle ground. Go to the current boss and explain the situation. Offer to stay two weeks, and to help actively with the process of getting other people up to speed on any work that's been uniquely yours.

The situation seems a bit ironic to me, as the sort of person for whom even the most amicable of partings tends to go more along the lines of "well, we're sorry to hear that you're leaving, and will wish you well...now let's go clean out your desk and notify security that your credentials aren't valid anymore". :)

[tsidel]

RE: you don't get to chose your references

I had an interview where they called one of my freelance clients before I even showed up for the interview. The interviewers talked to the wrong people (as in, they talked with people I had never even met) but my reputation (thankfully a good one) had spread throughout the org... and the friends of the interviewers were able to give me a great recommendation.

I wonder if that will become more common... the interviewer picking, locating, calling for interviewees references.

[MemphisFan]

probably not too much, since it's actually illegal. Not on the part of the hiring company, but if the company they call gives them much more than start/end dates and if you are re-hirable, then odds are your old company is breaking the law (in the US).

A reference is a different situation, but if they are cold-calling like that it is not considered a reference but instead employment verification.

[Suzanne Lucas]

MemphisFan,

This is false. A reference can say anything that is true. So, if you were a whiny mess, they can say that. If you ate at your desk and got peanut butter all over your computer, they can say that. If you were rude to coworkers, they can say that.

What they can't say are things that are false. It's a myth that people can't give references. Lots of companies have policies against it, but it's absolutely not illegal to give a reference.

[ebardon]

If you're leaving for a direct competitor, they may prefer you not to continue on after giving notice, especially if you have access to particular types of information. I can see one month being reasonable for certain types of positions or geographic areas though (I've never seen an open position filled in under 6 weeks at my current company, even when it means that we annoy customers from our lack of responsiveness).

[kebhouseee]

We had a co-worker do this one time. Just up and left with no notice or anything. just left all his equipment and files on the desk and vanished. Made for an exciting office gossip day but not really a good move career-wise.

[Osprey4]

One month seems excessive. Standard courtesy is two weeks. Beyond that, unless there is a substantial carrot, I see no reason to give one month notice. Where my son works, he says the company "requires" three weeks. I told him about my former employer who, when I handed in two-week notice, immediately walked me out the door (yes, I was paid for the remainder of the two weeks). So much for burning bridges.

[Suzanne Lucas]

Some companies do that, and as long as they pay you out the two weeks, I don't have a problem with it. But, if the company requests a months notice, you fail to give it at your own peril.

That said, I imagine most managers would happily accept your two weeks notice.