Giving two week notice...

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So I've finally secured a home health position and am ready to submit my 2 week notice to my nurse manager. My (silly) question. My two week notice will be over my two week vacation. Is that ok to do? I won't technically have a last day worked. I'm just trying to word my formal letter. I won't come back to the hospital from vacation.

yet nobody can answer the question of how it's unprofessional...why it's unprofessional...and nobody has piped up to say, "i did that and it was a bad decision," or "i had an employee do that and it affected me in X manner."

the whole purpose of giving a notice is so the manager has time to fill your spot on the schedule. until someone can tell me...until ANYONE can tell me how being on vacation has an impact on the manager's ability to fill that spot....there is no logic as to why it's "unprofessional."

comparing something like "flipping your manager off" which has some logic behind it (the bird = F you) to someone giving a two week notice during a time their shift will be covered is like comparing apples to oranges....the differences are obvious.

In order to explain why it is unprofessional I would have to delve into the sociodynamics of the workplace, western culture, post WWII work place environments etc.

Can you explain why saying F you either verbally or in gesture is offensive? It's just a word/action is it not?

I did personally do this from my first job at Big Lots. I was an assistant associate manager in San Diego, I found another job and so I took my vacation and quit on my first day. I quickly found out that I could no longer use that employment as a reference, although I did follow the letter of rules. I had 2 options after that, tell future employers that I worked there but they could not call them for a reference or simply omit them from my resume. Not a big deal since Big Lots was not exactly a prestigious place to work at.

The fact is a majority of strangers on this website reaffirm the fact that they feel the situation is inappropriate. Feel free to study this and write a masters level thesis on the subject so that we all can better understand why certain actions are offensive.

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Specializes in Oncology.

Our manager schedules 1 month in advance. However since I am an at will employee I gave 2 weeks notice (the 3rd week, the one after my 2 weeks would be my vacation, only 2 days of it paid) and I don't feel bad at all. I gave them plenty of notice to cover my shifts. And I didn't plan that to happen with my vacation, but I'm not giving up my PTO and they wouldn't give me 2 weeks notice were they eliminating my position and I wasn't gonna make my new job wait more than 2 weeks, that's ridiculous.

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Specializes in hospice.

where I work, when people have given notice, they turn around and say leave now. Not too many people give notice anymore because of this.

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In order to explain why it is unprofessional I would have to delve into the sociodynamics of the workplace, western culture, post WWII work place environments etc.

Can you explain why saying F you either verbally or in gesture is offensive? It's just a word/action is it not?

I did personally do this from my first job at Big Lots. I was an assistant associate manager in San Diego, I found another job and so I took my vacation and quit on my first day. I quickly found out that I could no longer use that employment as a reference, although I did follow the letter of rules. I had 2 options after that, tell future employers that I worked there but they could not call them for a reference or simply omit them from my resume. Not a big deal since Big Lots was not exactly a prestigious place to work at.

The fact is a majority of strangers on this website reaffirm the fact that they feel the situation is inappropriate. Feel free to study this and write a masters level thesis on the subject so that we all can better understand why certain actions are offensive.

fortunately, most employers can't consider you as "ineligible for rehire" because they thought the notice that you gave which complied with the rules to a "T" were "offensive."

i have the credentials to be a manger. i don't know that my career goals will ever lead me in that direction, but if they do......i would not be offended by someone intelligent enough to give me proper notice and use up their PTO time before moving on. i would consider them efficient.

maybe the OP should've posed the question to a group of nurse managers or people who are qualified? in actuality, nobody knows the "correct answer" except for the OP's particular manger himself/herself.

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Specializes in Gerontology, Med surg, Home Health.

I've worked in a variety of places. Staff nurses usually give 2 week notice--managers give a month. Written or not, all of these places have a policy that once notice is given, you can't take any vacation. In Massachusetts, employers are obligatd to pay out all your earned time if they fire you OR if you resign.I resigned from my current job 3 weeks ago. My new employer understands that I had to give a month's notice. I was SO hoping that they'd accept my resignation immediately, but no such luck so I finish one job on a Thursday...move on that Saturday and start my new job on Monday.

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Check your employee handbook, or check with HR. But if this vacation has been scheduled for a while, then I wouldn't worry about it. Many places ask for vacation scheduling months in advance. One place I worked at asked for 90 days notice prior to a week's vacation. If that's the situation, then I wouldn't worry about it.

And most places only require 2 weeks' notice from staff nurses. Is it more 'professional' to give more notice? I don't know - I know I have been treated poorly when I gave a lengthy notice - they knew I was moving out of town so I got the worst assignments.

Speak with your manager, and check with HR. Go on to your new position with a happy heart.

Best wishes!

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Specializes in Med/Surg/Bariatrics.

Thanks for the replys. I appreciate them. I gave vacation notice back in December, way before leaving this job. Handbook says 2 weeks but nothing about vacation. I talked to my clinical leader about this and she said it shouldn't be a problem (about my vacation) and 2 weeks notice but now I'm debating talking to my nurse manager. I've already given a start date to my new job so the only other thing to do would come back from vacation and then work my two weeks. Just not sure how the new job would take that.

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Specializes in Emergency.

Really just clear it with your manager. I got a promotion this year, and even though we were a bit short stafed my boss let me go after 2 weeks, she said she felt like i would not be that focused anyway!

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Specializes in Telemetry, OB, NICU.
to me....it is like saying to your manager, "you know i'm going on vacation, and i know you have staffing covered during that time. i need to tell you that i have also been offered another position which i have accepted. here is my notice. i will not be available as of july 1, 2012 but i'm sure you'll find someone to replace me during that two week time frame. is that a problem? if it is, let me know and i may be able to work something out."

if you want to get downright technical about "professionalism" then i would say that giving your manager a notice shouldn't come as a surprise. i have resigned from a job (on good terms) after several back and forths of "maybe i should just resign" and "no, i don't want you to." finally, i said, "my plan is to work here while i look for another position. when i find another position, i will give you proper notice," and my manager was fine with that. any good manager would be considering prospects if they knew nurses might be leaving (and even if they don't know....they should always be prepared).

so, i might say it's "unprofessional" to be actively seeking employment and hiding it from your manager.

Oh, there is no point in arguing professionalism with you. Our perspectives of it is wholly different. And for the bold part, of course one may actively look for another job while not telling the manager. That just has nothing to do with professionalism.

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I'd try to give a working two week notice, but, if your next job wants you ASAP and they won't postpone your hire date, then that is that.

I consider the requests for one month's notice just plain stupid... thus ignored by yours truly. FYI, for those who don't understand that the one month notice is just in case you are the type of chucklehead that will actually tell a prospective new employer that you are not available for the job they just offered you for an entire month...

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Specializes in none.

you have another job. What are you worried about?

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Specializes in Med/Surg/Bariatrics.
you have another job. What are you worried about?
My current employer is my first nursing job, so I would like to use them as reference. Plus, as others have stated I do want my vacation covered with my PTO and don't want to risk not getting my PTO when I leave as I have 240+ hours. And although I do not like my current job I do like my nurse manager so I just want this to end in the best way possible. Having said that I can no longer or am willing to continue at my current job. I am exhausted and ready to move on.
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