Minimum notice periods

[AirHostess]

Have you ever resigned and given less than the notice period?

After quitting my flight attendant job (my notice period was a week so I gave 8 days) I am doing a temp fixed term contract as a medical personnel officer in a hospital.

I will be returning to my old (and lovely) job in the civil service in London and I am waiting for a start date as they need to top up my vetting etc

I have to give 4 weeks notice even though I am a temp and have currently been there for a month. The job is basically crap, the manager is awful and I haven't been trained so I end up sitting doing nothing, filing, photocopying or running errands.

Do you think I would be wrong in giving less than a months notice when I leave? As you can see, the place would not fall apart without me!

[Broomjockey]

I dunno. You might want to check about the possible consequences of leaving without the minimum notice. I left my last job with a week's notice instead of two, but that's because it stressed me into a breakdown and school finals were coming up.

But yeah, I'd check and see what the issues might be. They probably wouldn't do anything, but it is good to be prepared.

[Banrion]

I think the worst that could happen will be that this company will put you on a "Not Eligible for Rehire" list, and since it sounds that you have no desire to ever go back, it's not a huge deal. Just don't use them as a refrence in the future when looking for jobs. Also since you have only been there a month, you really don't even have to include them on your resume.

[Andara Bledin]

For only a month, it's probably better to not include them on any future resumes.

^-.-^

[Jester]

Have you ever resigned and given less than the notice period?

Normally I always give two weeks. Except, of course, the infamous Shit Weasel incident, in which I went to Shit Weasel's boss and told him that I was resigning, effective immediately, and that it was basically due to Shit Weasel and my feeling that working with him was becoming a "hostile work environment." Truly one of my better more enjoyable moments in life.

As for you, I would say if you want to quit, quit. This being a temp job, I can only see two bad repercussions:

1. You don't get to use said temp job as a reference. Big whoop.
2. The temp agency that got you said job will probably not help you find any work in the future. This may be potentially a bigger problem for you than the first one.

But, unless there is a signed contract, leaving a job without giving "appropriate" notice is nothing more than a bit rude and inconsiderate. If you don't mind being rude and inconsiderate to these people, then I don't see a problem. Appropriate notice is an etiquette thing, not a legal thing.

[Dawnchaser]

A month's notice seems excessive to me honestly. Most people, when they get hired at new places, need to start their new jobs sooner than that.

I did try to give a month's notice at my last job because we had so few people. Two weeks is considered polite around here though it is an at-will state (meaning you can just walk off the job or be fired at any time for any reason).

The problem was, it was a phone job...so was my new job. It was also cold/flu season. So I caught a bug from the person sitting next to me in my training class and (as I usually do) lost my voice from it. So really I only worked a few days of my notice and had to give up. Luckily it was awhile before my training class hit the phones and they found other stuff for me to do till I got my voice back or I might've been jobless.

I'm sure the folks at my last job all thought I was just sick of it...which I was but I was going to try and stick it out anyway.

I would probably give a month's notice for my current job (was promoted off the phones) because again, this dept is pretty small...and I wouldn't have to worry about losing my voice.

[Kiwi]

You should give the same amount of notice as when your paid.... if your paid every two weeks you give two weeks, if your paid by the month you give a month. It all depends on what would happen? I know of some places that will with hold the pay for up to the amount of notice and use it to "offset" the expenses of replacing you.

Check out what the consequences are (they should be in the contract you signed with the temping company) and make your choice based on that.

[Boozy]

You don't have to give any notice. Unless you want them as a reference, and it doesn't sound as though you do.

I gave my last job two months notice - and they still hadn't hired anyone to replace me when I left. And then they begged me to stay a bit longer. Sorry, but I gave you guys eight weeks to help yourselves. I was overly generous as it was.

[AirHostess]

Thanks for your advice.

I'm employed by the hospital (and we know how short of funds the UK NHS is so I can't see them taking me to court, people very rarely get taken to court over breach of contract ie leaving a job without proper notice) I'm not sure they could do anything if I left...according to UK law they can't withold salary either. Not like I'm in the Army!

I am intending to stay at my new job for a long time, it's my old job that I quite enjoyed and I only left as I had always wanted to be a flight attendant and try it. So even if I left there I wouldn't need to give the hospital as a reference at all as hopefully I'd have been there for a few years.

Hopefully I will be contacted in a few weeks and given a start date!

What I may do is hand my notice in but ask for a waiver of notice period explaining that I want to re-start my job asap and that I need time to find accomodation etc.

The thought of working my notice period of 4 weeks makes me want to cry

[Knightmare]

Normally, I give a two week notice. But when I quit Lowe's, I resigned the same night I decided to quit.
My new job (awesome job, BTW) needed me as soon as possible. And since I never had a weekend off, and was sick of the BS that Lowe's was putting me through, I wrote up an "I quit" letter and gave it to the MOD.
So, I got a weekend off, FINALLY, and really enjoyed it. I started work the following Monday.
Florida is a "right to work" state, and either party can terminate employment at any time, for any reason.

A two week notice should be sufficient for the company. Heck, just walk out if you want to.

[BookstoreEscapee]

A month seems rather excessive to me, too. I've never seen anything other than 2 weeks as the standard "expected" notice. I gave 6 weeks at my Philly job, but then I was leaving for personal reasons, I really liked the job and the people, and my time frame had to do with the lease on my apartment. Plus I wanted to make sure they had time to find someone because I really didn't want to leave them in a lurch.

Whatever you decide, good luck on the new (old) gig

[wagegoth]

If it's in the contract, then definitely ask for a waiver of notice. Whatever happens, it never hurts to leave on at least decent terms. Also, since the laws are different in the UK, you might want to check with your equivalent of a labor board.

[cinema guy]

In the UK it tends to be a month, especially if you are paid a monthly salary.

[AirHostess]

I think I will deffo ask for a waiver of notice, it's not even like I am a vital part of the team. Just praying that I can start back at my old new job soon before I go mad!

[NoodleBoy]

when I quit my fast food job, I called in, asked how far out I'd been scheduled, and told my manager that was the last day I'd work. I was really sick of every aspect of that job.

Funny thing is, once I knew I'd be out of there soon, it all lightened up. Not having to take the job seriously is a great morale booster. I was kind of a dick about it-- I didn't put up with the usual SC crap because I knew the store was scrambling to find someone to replace me, so they wouldn't fire me for not playing along with what every idiot who walked in the door wanted to play that day.

I did end up working a couple days after my supposed last day, just to help them out a little.