Tuesday, June 22, 2010

The Burnt Bridge

The following was emailed to everyone in my company, which amounts to several hundred people. The author works in a different city, and I've never met him. I can only assume the author will not get a positive reference in the future. Identifying info removed.

Also, whose fault is it that this person didn't read the employee manual before leaving? Isn't that a no-brainer?


To my shock, after giving notice and having an HR interview, I was never informed of the information below.

Per the (Company) Policy Manual, we do not pay out for unused vacation time unless an associate is employed for at least 18 months. Our Policy states:

“If an associate’s employment terminates for any reason after the associate has been employed by (The Company) for at least eighteen (18) months, the associate will be entitled to pay for vacation which has accrued but which has not been taken. Vacation pay is based on regular base pay.”

Now I believe in professionalism (ed. note: Really? Keep reading.), but I also think the policy above is used to punish employees that do not stay longer than 18 months.

Everyone should know that ANY employee of (The Company) that have been with the company for less than 18 months and are considering leaving for another opportunity, are not entitled to be paid for, or allowed to take accrued vacation.

This is the only company I have ever work for that has this kind of policy (the policy is backed by the department of labor).

In my opinion, if you have less that 18 months service You Should not give any Notice Period it is not required and you gain nothing by giving notice. I would go as far as to say, use all accrued vacation before handing in your notice or quiting.

I wish you all luck and the very best for the future,
(Person Who Quit)

6 comments:

kcmeesha said...

actually the guy is right,maybe not in his handling but in general,you accrue vacation and it's usually paid out on a pro-rated basis.otherwise you are being robbed of the pay,no matter what your handbook says.the company usually already factors in the service by giving less vacation to people with less service and most places usually pay out what's due.

JJSKCK said...

I agree with him in principle. Many companies have a waiting period before earning/accruing/using vacation, but 18 months is excessive.

However, that's also why you read the manual. I didn't know about the 18 month rule, but I certainly would have known about it before I gave my notice. For instance, very few companies pay out for sick time when you leave...which may affect one's decision to use some of it up before they quit.

And you never pull some crap like this. Industries are too small to pull crap like this.

TBinKC said...

Dude shows incredible lack of judgment and maturity. All he seemed to have accomplished is to say loudly and clearly, "You guys are better off without me."

kcmeesha said...

many people like to quit like this,just like that radio-host woman whose last words on the air were "I quit this bitch", that was for all of us who want to do it but don't have balls to pull it off.

JJSKCK said...

m.v. - If that was his goal, I think he failed. It wasn't nearly explosive enough. All he did is guarantee himself a crappy reference without getting the satisfaction of jumping up and down on the copy table in the middle of the cube farm screaming "I hate this effing place" with both middle fingers raised at attention.

kcmeesha said...

I know,he didn't have enough flair,probably 18 months is not enough to build up the necessary level of hate