Thread: Quitting after a bonus?

Long story short I'm quitting my job in the near future to go back to school for post-production/editing. I'd honestly love to quit now and start school ASAP but if I stay at work through June I stand to get a pretty substantial bonus that will really come in handy when I'm back in school and living off of PT work and student loans (hello Lotus 138's and a Macbook Pro ).

The question I'm having trouble with is how long I should wait to quit after I get the bonus. Two weeks? A month? 10 minutes? I want out ASAP but quitting the day after I get the bonus would probably burn some bridges. Any suggestions?

Originally Posted by robokill1981

Long story short I'm quitting my job in the near future to go back to school for post-production/editing. I'd honestly love to quit now and start school ASAP but if I stay at work through June I stand to get a pretty substantial bonus that will really come in handy when I'm back in school and living off of PT work and student loans (hello Lotus 138's and a Macbook Pro ).

The question I'm having trouble with is how long I should wait to quit after I get the bonus. Two weeks? A month? 10 minutes? I want out ASAP but quitting the day after I get the bonus would probably burn some bridges. Any suggestions?

As soon as the check clears if you don't ever plan on going back.

bonus is based on worrk done,so morally dont feel to bad on it.
quitting the day after isnt good either tho.
it happens a lot in my buis, people quit in January after bonuses pay out.

I would give it a few weeks, and just be honest as to why you are leaving.

Maybe plant a "I have been thinking about going back to school" seed with the boss now.
Approach her/him in a you think you could do both kinda way.....

That's a good question. On one hand, the bonus is for work that you've already done, so quitting immediately afterwards should be fine. There will likely be some that don't think too highly of it. I'd suggest giving it a day or two before puting in your 2 weeks notice.

That said, I just applied for a new job that didn't accept former employers/coworkers as references (and I've heard that this is becoming the norm)...so would quitting immediately really burn bridges? I know, you might run into one of these people later in your life...but what are the odds of that?

Originally Posted by slim

As soon as the check clears if you don't ever plan on going back.

If you can tolerate going to work for a couple of more weeks after the bonus I'd do it. Even if you dont want to go back there, people may be useful as references or in other capacity later, and in the long run those two weeks won't make much of a difference.

I'm quitting my job.
I told my boss I'm waiting for the profit sharing check b efore I put my 2 weeks in.

He thought that was funny.
But he has more m oney than me.

Don't make any mention of plans to leave until after the bonuses come out.

I agree with Woodsy that the bonus reflects work done, not to be done. I disagree that you should "plant any seeds". Take the bonus, thank your boss, and then tell him/her your plans and give 4 weeks notice. He/she will be happy for you, and appreciate the month's notice.

Originally Posted by SkiingBear

That said, I just applied for a new job that didn't accept former employers/coworkers as references (and I've heard that this is becoming the norm)

Just out of curiosity - what do they ask for in place of these references?

As soon as check clears.

The bonus is for work you've done and not a down payment.

If you're aware of the date the bonus is paid they can hardly blame you for planning around it.

Shouldn't be an issue at all. You should be able to give notice and let them know you're leaving after you get your bonus. It's happened quite a few times at my office and no hard feelings that I've ever heard of.

I think if you tell them you were waiting for the bonus check to help finance your education, they should understand. Any employer that isn't supportive of a person trying to further their education isn't someone I'd care too much about burning anyway.

Edit: I'd wait for the check before saying anything, though.

Damn that was a lot of advice quickly. Thanks guys. The bonus is definitely for work already done, but if I gave two weeks a week before bonuses were paid then I'm sure my employer would give me a significantly smaller bonus than if they thought I was staying. Which is probably what I would do if I was the employer and I knew someone was taking off.

I'm thinking of giving either 4 weeks the week I get the bonus, or waiting two weeks and giving a two week notice. Problem is that I'm the only one who knows how to do my job so if I give two weeks I'll have to come up with a reason to start training someone before that because that isn't enough time to really get someone set up on my job. But then again the fact that I'm the only person who does my job is pretty dumb so I'll be justified in starting to train someone before I give my notice.

Originally Posted by seatosky

Just out of curiosity - what do they ask for in place of these references?

They wanted 3 references that were not former employers/coworkers or family. Basically I listed 3 friends that I know the best...not sure what good that does, it's not like they're going to say anything negative about me.

The fact that most employers will not say much if contacted as a reference IMHO is making the whole process rather obsolete. The simple fact that employers can't make negative comments about a former emplyee without fear of a lawsuit is rather ridiculous (I understand the logic...but it's still pretty dumb).

If you're gonna stay 4 weeks after the bonus, give 4 weeks notice.

In my experience, people are much more understanding the more time you give them to plan around your departure.

Originally Posted by ski_trader

If you can tolerate going to work for a couple of more weeks after the bonus I'd do it. Even if you dont want to go back there, people may be useful as references or in other capacity later, and in the long run those two weeks won't make much of a difference.

Zee JONG ist zee weinnar!

Originally Posted by robokill1981

...I'm thinking of giving either 4 weeks the week I get the bonus, or waiting two weeks and giving a two week notice. Problem is that I'm the only one who knows how to do my job so if I give two weeks I'll have to come up with a reason to start training someone before that because that isn't enough time to really get someone set up on my job. But then again the fact that I'm the only person who does my job is pretty dumb so I'll be justified in starting to train someone before I give my notice.

Don't know what kind of relationship you have with your boss, but if this is truly the case, maybe approach him with the 4 week idea to train someone up and ask for a little extra for going that "extra mile" for the company...otherwise you're leaving in 2 weeks. You'd probably have a reference for life (for what that's worth) and maybe you could get another (albeit smaller) bonus. If you're planning on leaving anyway...is there really any harm in asking?

Originally Posted by SkiingBear

Don't know what kind of relationship you have with your boss, but if this is truly the case, maybe approach him with the 4 week idea to train someone up and ask for a little extra for going that "extra mile" for the company...otherwise you're leaving in 2 weeks. You'd probably have a reference for life (for what that's worth) and maybe you could get another (albeit smaller) bonus. If you're planning on leaving anyway...is there really any harm in asking?

Not a bad idea at all. My boss and I are on great terms and I'm leaving work to do something totally unrelated to what I do now so I don't really expect any hard feelings about quitting. I'm leaning towards a 4 week notice the same week I get the loot, and approaching it in a way that lets them know I really want to get someone trained and comfortable on my job before leaving.

This question depends on your relationship with your employer. If you don't like them and are not worried about bridges, put your two weeks in after the check clears. If you do like them or want to maintain some type of relationship even for just references, I would say four weeks. They've got to respect your desire to further your education and if they don't, f*ck them.

Your situation sounds like they need you for training so you shouldn't have to worry but my future brother-in-law put in a 6 week notice and he worked for a friend. They agreed that he could help hire/train a new person in that time and he was quitting to go back to school. Well, his "friend", thought that he was just watching the clock and canned him one week into the six weeks leaving him jobless and bonusless and this totally screwed their friendship. I thought his old boss was a dick anyway.

Originally Posted by SkiingBear

They wanted 3 references that were not former employers/coworkers or family. Basically I listed 3 friends that I know the best...not sure what good that does, it's not like they're going to say anything negative about me.

The fact that most employers will not say much if contacted as a reference IMHO is making the whole process rather obsolete. The simple fact that employers can't make negative comments about a former emplyee without fear of a lawsuit is rather ridiculous (I understand the logic...but it's still pretty dumb).

I'm pretty sure all a former employer can say these days is "Yes, they did work here from xxxx to yyyy and they held abc position." They can't discuss wages, reasons for leaving/firing whatever. Basically, the former employer can't tell anyone anything.

I didnt read all the posts and I am sure it has been said but, your bonus is based upon past performance and is only suppose to encourage future performance. I wouldn't have any moral/ethical quandries about waiting, getting the check, making sure it cashes, and then leaving a vapor trail behind you on the way out.

As an employer, I've had employees do everything (good and bad). So I always appreciate someone taking the effort to give me notice. Even if you wait until after your bonus check, two weeks is probably good, but four would be really nice. You never know if you'll need to come back to your old job... (You'd be surprised how often I get people returning and I only rehire those who left on good terms, of course!)

Try this web site... she's very good for work issues: http://www.wvec.com/jobfair/woes/

4 weeks notice is definitely the way to go. I'm a partner in a law firm, and I am one of the people who decides who gets and how much to give. Candor and curtesy go a long way. Let Your boss know why you are giving him 4 weeks instead of two. He will appreciate your professionalism, and you will be the rock star.

Peace.

Thanks for the advice guys. Seems like how much time I give in my notice is more important than timing my departure around my bonus. I'm planning on a 4 weeks notice within 3-5 days of getting the bonus so I can get the hell out of here quickly, but still leave on good terms.

Originally Posted by robokill1981

Thanks for the advice guys. Seems like how much time I give in my notice is more important than timing my departure around my bonus. I'm planning on a 4 weeks notice within 3-5 days of getting the bonus so I can get the hell out of here quickly, but still leave on good terms.

They cannot say much about that. You are entitled to that bonus. Wether you leave on good terms or bad it really depends on wether he guy is an asshole or not. Dont over think this, its really not up to you.