How to Quit a Job & Resign at Work

How I Quit My Job

An employee goes from engaged to disengaged like lightening, and a passive candidate to active possibly even at a faster pace.  An employee reaches the decision in a split second.  They have reached their breaking point and had enough.  They quit their job or worse they continued being unproductive stealing from your organization either with time or in other ways.  I distinctly remember when the breaking point came for me at my Regional HR Manager job when my boss forgot I was leaving for vacation.  Having tried to sync up with him for a quick meeting all day, I finally approached him directly after lunch reminding him that I was leaving for my 10 day vacation to Mexico.  He was upset.  There was fire in his eyes.  He had forgotten about my vacation even after I put in a formal request, and I was to blame.  He finally took my meeting informing me that he needed me back a day earlier than my request.  I made the call to change our flight plans and pay the ticket differences.  It was at that moment I made the decision to actively look for another job and became an angry, bitter, and disengaged employee.

I wanted nothing more than to resign immediately and show him.  Except I had responsibilities like a house payment, and my company offered good insurance.  Damn, how being an adult gets in the way of doing what you really, truly want.  And what I wanted was revenge.

After nearly missing my flight, my husband and I ran to the terminal.  I remember crying as our plane took off.  Two days later I was phone interviewing while on the beaches of Mexico, and three months later I was out the door.  Resigning from my job was a treat.  I daydreamed about it, and planned for the moment when I could take back my life.   The resignation was standard.  I quit my job and submitted my two weeks notice with the scenario not playing out like I had dreamt.  There was no groveling, crying, or apologies from my boss.  I worked out my two weeks quietly, and we went about our lives.

I was reminded of this story a couple weeks ago as employees who are disengaged are increasingly taking to social media to issue very public resignations and dissatisfactions with their job.  They are writing blog posts as resignation letters. This coupled with a friend of mine who is working with a shitty boss, I was reminded how much restraint it took for me to work out my two weeks.

The snipit above is from the very public resignation via a personal blog does not hold back.  I’ve highlighted the words “concerted activity” for you in the paragraph above.  This employee who resigned in late October from Price Edwards lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and posted her resignation letter on her blog even mentioning the National Labor Relations Board.  The letter remains visible for all to see, and it is my understanding that this former employee has yet to be approached by Price Edwards.  No word if she contacted the NLRB as she mentioned in her resignation letter. Imagine how horrible her perceived working environment must have been for her to publicly publish how she resigned from work.  I think our employees deserve a work environment better than that.  Certainly, publicly posted resignation letters damage our company’s recruiting and engagement efforts including our employer brand.

When writing your own formal and professional resignation letter, I recommend that you do the following:

• Formal Is Best.  This means using a format that includes the your company address and the formal name of the person you are writing the letter to.  Double space and include your own address.  Double space again and include the date followed by a quadruple space before beginning the resignation letter with, “Dear Mr. So and So,”  For a formal template and guide, you can download the job seeker toolkit for instructions.

• Be Direct.  State that this letter serves as your two week notice, and your last work day is effective with the date included.  If you enjoyed working there, say so.  If you did not, don’t air your dirty laundry here.  You can meet with HR or a manager within the organization to formally discuss your dissatisfaction.  Remember, this document is forever attached to your employee file, and all electronic conversations are included in any future litigation or investigations you may or may not be involved in.

• Keep It Simple. When writing a formal and professional resignation letter, I like to keep things simple and save the person reading time and effort by copying and pasting the resignation letter directly into the body of the email.  Include the formal document attached which includes your formal signature.  Typically, as an HR professional, I add this formal letter into your employee file.  Your resignation letter should be no more than 2-3 paragraphs.

• Include Your Contact Information.  Include any instructions as to where to mail your final paycheck, W-2, or where to contact you for questions.  This includes your mailing address, email, and/or phone number as you feel comfortable providing.

• Rise Above.  Resist the temptation to be an ass.  Add the words “Sincerely,” sign your resignation letter, and let it go.

• Talk to Someone About Your Dissatisfaction.  As a HR professional, I advise you, the employee to alk to someone, a manager, human resources, or the CEO.  Remember, as HR I’m a representative of a company, and the guy that pays my bills is my first priority.  You can also talk with attorneys or government bodies like the EEOC, NLRB, or Department of Labor to name a few.  Remember, that all conversations, documents, and electronic messages are subject to being dug up, disclosed, and discussed.  Depending on your channel, your dirty laundry may be available for view by the public so be prepared.

Workplace Revenge

Years later I see my workplace revenge and resignation from this job differently.  I was angry.  The boss treated me horribly, but it was a moment in time.  I learned from that moment, made a decision of what type of manager I didn’t want to be, and moved on.  It’s called perspective.  It’s also called growing up.  I’m glad I didn’t burn that bridge.  Otherwise, I wouldn’t be writing about it today.