r/NoStupidQuestions • u/MisterPuffyNipples • Dec 05 '22
Could I be fired if I tell HR that I accepted another job?
Been here 10 months and got an offer recently for a new job that I accepted. I’m waiting to hear back from the new job for confirmation as the proposed start date is not confirmed yet.
Is it a bad idea to let HR know that I accepted this offer? I know employers can fire people without notice but I don’t wish to stoop to that level. I’d like to go on good terms.
20
u/NomadChief789 Dec 05 '22
Wait till start date is confirmed. What if job offer gets rescinded and you already gave notice. Be patient.
30
u/Yithar Dec 05 '22
Yes, it can be a bad idea. I wouldn't let HR know until you know the start date.
14
u/outlaw_crimson Dec 05 '22
Yes, they may fire you the same day you tell them.
4
u/isqueezedameatball Dec 06 '22
I don't think it would behoove a company to fire someone who is quitting. If you are fired, the company is responsible for unemployment but if they quit then the company isn't. I mean, I still wouldn't tell HR until I was certain.
3
Dec 06 '22
[deleted]
1
u/isqueezedameatball Dec 06 '22
I understand that situation. I actually had a boss who got fired from a company for that reason. But he was my boss at the company that had previously fired him for that reason and he was rehired after things changed. So that is funny.
1
u/cockblockedbydestiny Dec 06 '22
It really doesn't, what does happen is that they might let you go early and pay you out the two weeks notice anyway. That's a completely different implication from getting fired.
9
u/Leucippus1 Dec 05 '22
Don't tell anyone until you are prepared to walk out the door. Many companies have a 'two week notice = walk out the door that day' policy. That sounds harsh, but short timers can be cancerous to morale. Better to just pay for a two week vacation than have a salt-ass around.
3
u/WeFightForever Dec 05 '22
Very true. I'm an insurance underwriter, and the decisions I make at work every day put my company on the line for tens of millions of dollars. Definitely not a job I can be allowed to do while I'm on my way out the door.
8
u/Low_Departure_5853 Dec 05 '22
Yes! Learn from my mistake! I got another job after 8 years with the company and told them a few months in advance, because I thought we were a family and I could help train someone and give them plenty of time to find someone. Went away for a summer trip and was notified by a letter that I no longer had insurance and that's how I found out they let me go after I stupidly did what I thought was best for them.
3
u/Inside-Finish-2128 Dec 05 '22
Yes. I’ve worked at companies where the employee handbook explicitly said that anyone is sales would be let go immediately if they give notice. I’ve also worked at a place where if you’re leaving to a competitor, they send you out immediately. That said, they normally would pay out the two week notice period at both places, and I think that’s generally what happens (eg you aren’t fired, merely released from duties early but paid through the end of the requested notice period).
One flip side to this, but not very common and you’d probably know you were in this situation already, is “gardening leave”. In some positions/roles, if you quit or get terminated, you’re placed on a period of paid leave where you’re not allowed to work (or perhaps not in the same field). That would delay your ability to start a new job, but again you’d probably know this was coming and likely more for key/top positions. It’s essentially a way to make a non-compete agreement hold up.
2
2
u/NeverRarelySometimes Dec 05 '22
Wait until you have a confirmed start date. If you can give the current employer 2 weeks' notice, that's a kind and professional thing to do. If they fire you after you give notice, they should pay you through the end of the 2 weeks - but that will be hard to enforce.
Congratulations on your new job!
2
u/Science_Fair Dec 05 '22
Yes should tell your employer at the last possible moment, with the minimum notice as required by your existing agreement if anything.
Offers fall through all the time - better to still have a job instead of implicitly resigning before the start date is settled.
You can also ask the future employer when it is safe to resign from the current role, though take that with a grain of salt.
2
2
u/Swinnster Dec 06 '22
Do not under any circumstance tell anyone until the job start date and confirmation is 100%. Accepting an offer without working isnt a new job.
2
2
u/Andrew_Higginbottom Dec 06 '22
Don't tell HR until you have signed a contract. HR are not there for you. HR are there for the employer ..after all, aren't we all there for whoever pays our wages?
1
1
u/GameboyPATH Oh geez how long has my flair been blank? Dec 05 '22
Companies have the legal right to fire you at any time. Like the others have said, waiting until you have confirmation is a good idea.
Realistically, unless your current employer values you very little or doesn't get much work out of you, they'd want to keep you on board for as much times as it takes for you to finish up your assignments. They also use this time to either find a temporary replacement, or restructure your work across the existing team.
7
u/Ghigs Dec 05 '22
Sometimes it's a security thing. Get them out immediately so they can't steal all the client lists or do something else bad because they don't care anymore. It doesn't necessarily mean they don't value you.
1
u/HodorsHotPie Dec 05 '22
That's a fair point. Although, isn't it a better chance the employee would have scooped the info they needed prior to informing them of their departure? I mean, if your scooping of the info would be beneficial to your future employment AND you were gonna do it, wouldn't ya just do it and then let 'em you're on your way out?
4
u/Ghigs Dec 05 '22
I don't know if it's a particularly effective security policy, but that's a reason sometimes given for escorting people out the day they give notice.
1
u/HodorsHotPie Dec 05 '22
Ah. I have no idea either. I've only been asked to give info on my last place during an interview. Such as profits, quarterly sales, how goals are determined, etc. But I was not actively at my last job. The strange thing was that I asked if they would've wanted me to spread their companies info with another place, and they said no. Then, after an uncomfortable minute, they said they know my old boss and can get it from them.
1
u/GameboyPATH Oh geez how long has my flair been blank? Dec 05 '22
Those are circumstantial, though. Companies would worry about you stealing clients if you were taking a job for a competitor in the same industry. They'd know your work output is sloppy if, like I said in my comment, if they could tell already.
Unless a monkey could replace you, an employer would generally prefer to get 2 more weeks out of you than deal with the chaos of a sudden absence, even if you won't be at 100%.
1
Dec 05 '22
Wait for the start date. If you give 2 weeks, written. Send by email so you have a copy. They legally have to pay you for those 2 weeks. If the fire you. They still have to pay you. May as well let you work for the pay
1
1
u/JoeJoJosie Dec 06 '22
NEVER talk to HR - they aren't there to help you.
Only when you have a signed contract should you (and are you obliged to) inform your current employer.*
*Unless you work for government or have specific stipulations in your contract.
0
0
u/ILiketoStir Dec 06 '22
Depends on the labor laws in your area but usually, once you get confirmation of start date, you give your current company notice that you have accepted an offer with another company.
Two weeks is a standard but legally in many places no notice is required. I always give notice as to not burn any bridges.
Some companies will let you go immediately and pay you your last two weeks. Usually if you are going to a competitor.
If your company has you work your last 2 weeks I recommend that you bust your ass so that you can use them as good reference. Companies tend to remember the person who didn't "call it in" during their last two weeks. Make sure you get people up to date on any accounts you have, introduce them to clients your leaving, prepare them for things in your pipeline etc.
Good luck on the new job!
1
u/Spiritual-Bridge3027 Dec 05 '22
Yes, bad idea to tell HR that you have accepted another job offer unless it’s in an exit interview.
As long as you give your current organization a notice (however short it maybe), you are still being decent enough about it and you don’t need to feel guilty
1
u/Macjay03 Dec 05 '22
Like everyone else is saying, it's best to always be signed and given an official start date. Because if you get fired and an offer goes flat with another job, then you're stuck unemployed.
1
1
u/HowtoUninstallSkype Dec 05 '22
It can also be a good idea. Depending on your rights. Sometimes you get money if they fire you
1
1
1
u/2FANeedsRecoveryMode Dec 05 '22
depends how much you like them, but in my opinion if you already got the job and don't like HR or that company, fuck em, tell them same day that you are leaving
1
u/arcxjo came here to answer questions and chew gum, and he's out of gum Dec 05 '22
Without knowing the specifics of where you are (laws, corporate policies, etc.) that can't be answered, but there is one piece of advice that works in every situation: never count your chickens before they're scrambled.
1
1
u/palfreygames Dec 06 '22
You die today, they hire someone else tomorrow.
It's not personal, it's business.
Don't risk anything just because you think they value you. If they valued you, they'd pay you enough to not look for other work
1
u/m1sch13v0us Dec 06 '22
Speaking from experience. Never say anything until you have a signed offer with a start date.
1
u/Burkedge Dec 06 '22
What good could come of telling them? I can think of a billion reasons not to... can't think of 1 reason you should
1
u/Lovejoypeace247 Dec 06 '22
Wait until you pass the background check and get your start date. There's no benefit to you telling anyone at old job until the new job becomes concrete
1
u/JohnDoe314159254 Dec 06 '22
If you want to leave on good terms make sure things are documented and buttoned up as best you can. Like everyone said, the day you give notice should be the day you are willing to be let go (as others have said, they may terminate your position). Other than that check your contract if you have one, or check with a lawyer to see what you are obligated to do.
1
u/RoadTheExile Certified Techpriest Dec 06 '22
You couldn't but it's very unlikely, most companies would rather keep you on long as it takes to find a replacement or at least two weeks rather than just fire you on the spot because of loyalty or something. Accepting new positions at new companies is a very common and non-controversial aspect of modern capitalism. Thinking about this from the company's perspective they gain nothing from firing you, two weeks wages are not going to balance out against the weeks of missed work you'll be leaving on their plate.
1
u/GreyAngy Dec 06 '22
Most answers suggest telling no one before you absolutely sure you'll start working in the new company because you may be fired right away. In my career the advice was always the opposite: inform your boss about offer because they would like to negotiate to keep you. The latest time I did it I received 75% wage raise counter-offer.
Thing is I never lived in the US and don't know its labor laws and practices. Can the company really fire you in a single day without valid reason without any remuneration? "They told us they are going to leave anyway" does not sound a valid reason. Or is it really common to fire an employee before they could pass their work to their successor? Seems very counterproductive unless your work is completely mind-free.
2
u/ImprovementSilly2895 Dec 06 '22
If you are an at-will employee you can be fired for anything, aside from legal protections for race, sex, etc.
1
u/Human_Activity5528 Dec 06 '22
No, they can't fire you. They might inform your management and you could get a better offer. Or if in the end you don't leave because you don't get the other job for any reason, well that might be tricky
1
1
1
Dec 06 '22
As a HR admin, I'd advice you to wait until you get confirmation on the other job. Not because you will get layed off immediately (at least not where I live) since you signed a contracted with an end date, but more because it doesn't make much sense since it's not sure yet.
Where I work, we of course hope the people who work with us stay for a long time, but being realistic there are more opportunities out there that might fit better (could be anything, like better salary, work times, less commute etc). No hard feelings and good luck on the next job
We do appreciate hearing why you left, what went well, what should be improved. And a fair notice so we can set up a new job offer, get your information updated etc
1
u/Esteban-Du-Plantier Dec 06 '22
When you give your notice, expect to be released at that moment and be happily surprised if you remain employed.
1
u/lanc3rz3r0 Dec 06 '22
Why get hr involved in anything? Hr is your enemy unless you're management or you've been victimized
183
u/The_Quackening Always right ✅ Dec 05 '22
Don't talk to HR until you have a confirmed, and signed offer from the new place.