Repercussions for quitting during Pandemic

[theoneandonly]

First I would like to state that I fully support nurses who have quit during this pandemic because they put their families lives and themselves first. A job is not worth your life.

It's without question to say that their may be consequences for this action in regards to future career prospects. I wanted to get a general idea of what you guys think could be the consequences for quitting? Here's my take on it.

Many Nursing schools are allowing their new grads an early start/release. Also many retired nurses are coming out of retirement and in to help with the pandemic. There are also many volunteers. My theory is that once this pandemic slows down, and things start to get back to normal, there will be an influx of job seekers, candidates, which will make it tougher to get a job or even an interview. Hospitals will not require as much staff as during the pandemic and their may even be layoffs.

Also my theory is that many employers will look very negatively upon nurses who quit during a crises. They will view it as job abandonment. It's unlikely that the coronavirus will go away completely, just likely slow down in numbers. If an employer wants to hire you they may ask themselves, "Will this person run away next season when the numbers go back up again or during the next pandemic which is inevitable". It's a valid question for any employer.

Also it's unlikely your former employer will take you back, especially if you didn't give 2 weeks notice. I have heard many nurses who quit w/o notice because of the dire unsafe circumstances they are in. Unfortunately many hospitals are now part of large chains/systems, so if you work for one of those, and left w/o notice, you probably won't be able to get a job in any facility within their health care system.