BARBELITH underground
 

Subcultural engagement for the 21st Century...
Barbelith is a new kind of community (find out more)...
You can login or register.


Underground > Conversation >

"I hereby tender my resignation..."

  
 
Cailín
23:59 / 21.11.06
It's my own stupidity that got me into this situation.
First I took the job I didn't really want, because it was good timing and I needed the money. Then I took the nice apartment belonging to one of my bosses, because I had to move and time was short and it was there. So, I have a job I hate, and my landlord is also my boss - I still like the apartment though.
I have just been offered a shiny new job. I have accepted. Now I have to quit my crummy old job. I start the shiny new job the first week of January. My current office shuts down from December 23rd to January 1st. So, following the two-weeks-notice rule, I need to resign on December 11th at the latest. My troubles are as follow:
1. I don't want to be evicted because that boss feels betrayed (I'm not quitting because of him, but he tends to take things personally).
2. I'm supposed to be going on a business trip halfway across the country from December 11th to the 14th. I really want to go on this trip, because it's somewhere I've never been, I'm still the best person to go for the purpose, there wasn't going to be any follow-up work for me afterward anyway, and by then the tension (whether I've said anything or not) will be terrible. However, I don't want to quit on the first day of the trip and have my other boss who's going with me pissed for the duration (I think she'll know why I'm quitting, but it'll really fuck things up if I quit while we're on the road).
3. I have six bosses. One of them knows I intend to quit - and soon, and he wishes me luck. The rest are in the dark. How do I quit to five people in a way that leaves them not bad-mouthing me (it's a small industry and everybody knows everybody)? Every time someone else has left, there's been a big discussion about loyalty - they don't feel that employees are loyal to them, but their own disloyalty to employees (they sell us out to each other all the time) is not a valid point in their eyes.

I don't intend to quit before December 1st (a Friday). That would be the earliest. Do I do it then (giving them the weekend to calm down), or wait until the following Monday (exactly 3 weeks notice)? Do I wait a few days longer (say December 7th - a Thursday) so they can't replace me on the business trip (they'd do it because they'd be pissed, not because it's what's best for the client)? Am I overanalysing this? Quite likely.

Somebody out there has to have been in a bad position to quit. Help?
 
 
MattShepherd: I WEDDED KALI!
00:12 / 22.11.06
Hey, what's best for you is what's best for you, and if they don't understand that you're leaving a crummy job for a better job, then screw 'em.

But definitely quit before taking the trip. If you lose the trip, well, if the new job's not worth that it can't be such a good new job. But if you can't step up and say you're leaving before the trip, you're basically suckering your current employers into ponying up for something that won't be of long-term benefit to them, and I couldn't blame them for holding a grudge over that. Quit pre-trip, if you lose the trip take it on the chin and know you did the most honourable of all possible things.

As far as (3) goes, again, you need to look out for yourself, and if you succinctly explain your position I'm sure they'll mostly all give you their blessing. Worst-case scenario, explain the offer and let them try to match it. I'm assuming they can't, for whatever reasons, and therefore you gave them a fair shake to keep you, but in the end you had to follow the dream, as it were.
 
 
Evil Scientist
07:12 / 22.11.06
2. I'm supposed to be going on a business trip halfway across the country from December 11th to the 14th. I really want to go on this trip, because it's somewhere I've never been, I'm still the best person to go for the purpose, there wasn't going to be any follow-up work for me afterward anyway, and by then the tension (whether I've said anything or not) will be terrible. However, I don't want to quit on the first day of the trip and have my other boss who's going with me pissed for the duration (I think she'll know why I'm quitting, but it'll really fuck things up if I quit while we're on the road).

It seems to me that if you have to hand in your notice by the 11th then you're going to have to risk that they may not want to send you on the business trip. If it's a small industry then you don't really want word to spread on how you held off handing in your resignation just so you could get a free flight.

If you feel you are the best person to make the trip then make them aware of that when you hand in your notice.

The thing is, you'll most likely leave with some bad feeling if you don't treat your bosses as adults. It might be an idea to take your immediate boss (the one who might take it personally) to one side and explain to him, before you hand it in, that you're going to do it and that it isn't personal. He may still feel a bit pissed off (and there's not really anything you can do about it if he does) but there's also a possibility that he'll feel placated by the fact that you told him first.
 
 
Tryphena Absent
12:45 / 22.11.06
Hand in your notice as soon as possible, certainly before 11th December emphasising that you want to fulfil your obligations to the company, explaining when your new job begins and see what happens.
 
 
Cailín
14:41 / 22.11.06
All sort of what I was thinking anyway. As for the trip - hell, I can go on my own dime some other time, it's really not about the free flight, because I won't really have spare time to see the place. The bigger concern for me is that they were sending me because they need a lot of work done in short time, and I do this particular type of work faster than anyone in the office (it requires a certain level of fitness, and I'm the only one here with an active gym membership). I'm also very fond of the client, and I'd prefer to fulfill my (read the company's) promise that I would do this one piece of work for her. I really hate not keeping my word. And I don't think the client should have to deal with shoddy work, just for the sake of keeping me grounded. I'll definitely quit before the trip - I was leaning pretty hard in that direction anyway - it's just a question of how long before the trip.
It's worth pointing out that my really big boss is a really big pouter and will want to have several conversations (whining sessions/guilt trips) with me about why I'm leaving. I'm aiming to keep these to a minimum while giving enough notice to clear my desk and hand off my projects properly.
I've already informed the boss who knew it was coming (he won't tell the rest of them, and I need his input since he's been here a lot longer and understands the various personality disorders here better than I do)- he and I have to go out of the office for a few hours on Friday, so we'll discuss my next step then.
There isn't anything they can offer to get me to stay. I'm going to exactly the same salary, it's just a different job in a different environment, and I really need the change.
 
 
Ron Stoppable
15:08 / 22.11.06
yeh I'd agree with the above. Honesty is key, particularly if you want to stay on good terms with your landlord / boss. No-one can really argue with "I'm really sorry but I've been offered an opportunity I just can't turn down."

It may be a headache for your employers but realistically, that's business. For all their emphasis on loyalty (which is important) any decent firm has to understand that staff churn is a fact of life.

Most likely your resignation will be greeted with disappointment rather than disapproval, and if not, well, to hell with 'em.

Congrats on the new gig!
 
  
Add Your Reply