Asking for a Friend- Will she be blackmarked for leaving new job?

[Nurse Beth, MSN]

Dear Nurse Beth,

My friend just accepted a position at Hospital X. She received an interview at her "dream hospital" from Hospital Y after accepting the job at Hospital X. Hospital X lowballed her pay and is paying her less than what she is making at her current position.

The question is, if her dream hospital comes back at a higher pay, what is the best way to resign from Hospital X during orientation without getting "blackmarked"?

She's got 5 years of experience and is being sought after by her dream hospital. It's nice to be wanted, but the HR departments have been slow to respond as usual.

Dear Can My Friend be Blackmarked?

You can only control your own choices and actions, and not what an employer will or won't do. The thing is, you can't control whether or not a hospital will "blackmark" you for quitting during orientation.

Blackmarking can mean putting "not eligible for re-hire" as a termination status but that's usually intended for internal information only. Typically if another facility requests a reference, only the dates of employment and job title will be given.

There is no "best way to resign during Orientation" except to be honest and polite. Don't expect to be met with warm feelings because they are losing an employee they wanted, chose, and hired.

It also depends how far along she is in orientation. If she in in the first week of orientation, that's different than being in the 10th week of a residency or fellowship to a specialty area, for example. Even in the first week of orientation, the facility has invested time and money into the employee, but the investment increases as time goes on.

Remind your friend that she needs to look at the whole benefit package and not just hourly wages. One hospital may offer a dollar less an hour, but provide free insurance. Another hospital may offer more per hour, but have no tuition reimbursement or 401K.

If she does resign, the sooner the better. In the end, she has to make the best decision for her and one that aligns with her values.

Best wishes,

Nurse Beth

Author, "Your Last Nursing Class: How to Land Your First Nursing Job"...and your next!

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[LisaNICUrn, BSN]

Something similar happened to me a few months back. I had just started in a position, was only in orientation about a month when my dream hospital offered me a position. I felt horrible but I knew I couldn't pass it up. I knew I was going to be fired right away cause who wants to spend money training someone who was leaving. I struggled with letting my current manager know right away and lose weeks of money before starting my new job, or wait till the last minute and leave. I did the respectful thing and thanked her for the opportunity but my dream job and hospital offered and I couldn't turn it down. I asked if I could still work and she said she never had anyone quit during orientation so she would have to call me later. She never did, and I never went back. Now I don't know if I'm black marked or not, but in the end, you have to do what's best for you. Dream jobs can turn in to a nightmare, but I wouldn't pass up your dream job. Tell them ASAP, so they can hire someone else to take your place. It's going to suck and maybe you do get black marked, just depends on what's more important to you. If it's your dream job and you're there forever, it doesn't matter. But if you leave, hopefully there's other hospitals in the area or other places you can work. It's a lose lose situation. Good luck

[Leader25, ASN, BSN, RN]

If you are deep in orientation don't worry ,they can terminate you as well you are without protection,just don't use them as a ref in other jobs,people leave during orientation all the time.