I’m Resigning…Someday

“One of my employees told me she plans to resign and is looking for another job. Can I hire someone now?”

Your HR Survival Tip

While you might feel you can move forward with replacing your employee, you’ll want to wait. You don’t have an actual resignation at this point and she could change her mind…or take months to find another job.

This is the one time when the employee is holding all the cards. And you dropped the ball by not locking down the resignation. Legally, until the employee gives you a resignation date, you’re on hold.

How do you control this situation? Be prepared. Here are a few examples:

• Employee: I don’t like working here and I’m going to resign as soon as I find a new job. You: Let’s talk about an actual date so we both can plan for your transition.
• Employee: I’m so mad, I should just resign! You: I’ll accept your resignation and will consider this your two-week notice.
• Employee: I’m planning on retiring one of these days. You: Let’s talk about this and set up a schedule so we’re both prepared.

Whenever possible, lock down a resignation date. If you change the date the employee gives you, you are turning that resignation into a discharge (firing or termination)…and made them eligible for unemployment. You can avoid that by waiting for that resignation date or by paying out their remaining work days.

Don’t forget to have the employee put their resignation in writing so you have the backup. Once you have an agreed upon resignation, you can start searching for that employee’s replacement. If the employee wants to change that date, you don’t need to agree but you can re-negotiate if it works for you.