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I've been offered an amazing new job that I'm 100% set on accepting. The only problem is that my current job is a contract that doesn't end until December 2018, and I also have to give 4 weeks notice to leave here.

The 4-week notice period can be brought up at any time, whereas the length of the contract is the time I have been allocated to finish all my work here. So while I do not have to stay until the end of the contract legally, it is one of those things that makes it more painstaking to leave.

I really want to leave as soon as possible because I'm tired of everything that revolves around my current job (the location, the work itself, the work environment).

I was watching Better Call Saul the other day and I saw how Saul got fired from his law firm by being a total disrespectful slob. I'm sure that would work but I don't think I have to go that far.

UPDATE:

Okay this post has actually helped me realise that for all intents and purposes, you just have to deal with the official notice period. My opinion has come a long way, if you remember what this question looked like at the time of uploading, you can see that it is a lot more civilised now (thanks to about 5 moderators) .

As it turns out, I have unspent holidays (vacation days) that I can take before my notice-end. Or I can work the whole four-weeks and get the unspent holidays as a cash bonus. Not sure what I'll do with that yet but I'm going to tie things up nicely by the time I leave. Cheers to everyone that shared their insight.

  • Would it be a good idea to contact HR/your manager and discuss it with them? – Ed Heal Mar 01 '17 at 14:09
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    "current job is a contract that doesn't end until december 2018 and also I have to give 4 weeks notice to leave here" Does that mean you can leave in 4 weeks and that's fine? – Richard Tingle Mar 01 '17 at 14:09
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    don't start an argument because of 4 weeks. It might be possible that you will regret it later. Trust me sometimes you meet people twice and you are might be unhappy about leaving in a bad manner. (I left in a bad manner, and I regret it) – RayofCommand Mar 01 '17 at 14:13
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    Getting fired on purpose is a TERRIBLE idea, give the 4 weeks notice and move on. Doing anything drastic enough to get you fired will almost certainly hurt you in the future. – Neo Mar 01 '17 at 14:18
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    To the close and down voters: This question is well written and fits the on-topic definition for The Workplace. If you disagree with the premise of the question, it is perfectly acceptable to post an answer which explains that. (See this question on Meta) – David K Mar 01 '17 at 14:25
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    Anything serious enough to get you fired on the spot will come back to bite you. How do you think your new company will feel about you if/when they hear about what you did at the old company? – brhans Mar 01 '17 at 14:25
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    @NonExistant I flagged this question for moderator attention. They can disassociate this question with your account if you like. I personally think the downvotes are unwarranted, even if like everyone else I think you are proposing the wrong solution. The question is worth having so people know not to make the mistake in the future. – David K Mar 01 '17 at 14:29
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    I think some of the down-voting may be due to the tone. For example: and not some inconsiderate HR rep that's gonna scold me for wanting to leave early. – disappointed in SO leadership Mar 01 '17 at 15:04
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    "some inconsiderate HR rep", as distinct from some inconsiderate employee who agreed that they'd work a 4-week notice period but now wants to just disappear without giving their employer time to arrange a replacement. – David Richerby Mar 01 '17 at 15:17
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    I will just say that if I were the hiring employer in this situation and found out my prospective employee had pulled something like this off, said future employee would be very quickly an ex-employee. – Voo Mar 01 '17 at 17:28
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    @RobertDundon The intent may be to troll. But we assume good intent, and the question is a useful one regardless of the motivations behind it. – Kaz Mar 01 '17 at 18:49
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    Would leaving without giving 4 weeks notice be serious enough to get you fired? Maybe try that. :-P /s – Ajedi32 Mar 01 '17 at 20:14
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    I'm half expecting a question asking "I'm a chemistry teacher who desperately needs money, is cooking meth a good idea?" to turn up after reading this. – Pharap Mar 02 '17 at 06:59
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    Yes, I'd worry more about damaging your new job that is lined up. Not living up to contractual obligations with your prior employer would worry me. Also, technically living up by showing up every day for the next 4 weeks but not giving your full talent in carrying out your job would also worry me. Personally, I would not only stay the 4 weeks, I'd do the best job I can. – Thomas Carlisle Mar 02 '17 at 12:48
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    -1, because even though @RichardTingle asked for clarification, it still is unclear if it's a 4 week notice period for leaving after December 2018 or just a 4 week notice period starting and endig at any chosen time and December 2018 is irrelevant for the question. – I'm with Monica Mar 02 '17 at 15:08
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    Okay just to clarify: The 4-week notice period can be brought up at any time, whereas the length of the contract is the time I have been allocated to finish all my work here so I do not have to stay until the end of the contract legally but it is one of those things that makes it more pain-staking to leave. –  Mar 02 '17 at 15:17
  • I can't see from your question that the 4-weeks notice impacts your new job - i.e. it's not like they need you to start immediately or anything... So just suck it up and do the 4 weeks! If you have any holidays left you may be able to take them at the end of the 4 weeks. (e.g. if you have 5 days holidays left then you could take the last week off, so effectively you only have to give 3 weeks notice. Though you would lose out on money if you had to be paid for unused holidays) – komodosp Mar 02 '17 at 15:31
  • @NonExistant: Thanks for the clarification. Please edit your question to include important information like that - it will be overlooked in comments. For now, I have edited for you. – sleske Mar 02 '17 at 15:48
  • A colleague of mine recently left after being given special permission to forego his notice period by our employer. He had some financial problems resulting from the death of his father and had no choice but to pursue a lucrative freelance opportunity. Unless there are some sort of mitigating circumstances like this, I can't see your employer letting you off the 4 weeks. You're going to have to just suck it up and work your 4 weeks. Getting yourself fired on purpose is a monumentally bad idea. – Jonathon Cowley-Thom Mar 02 '17 at 17:17
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    Stop wearing clothes around the office. HR won't be able to get rid of you fast enough. Agree to leave quietly and immediately if they agree to keep the conduct and deal sealed. They'll take the deal. – Bohemian Mar 03 '17 at 02:56
  • No one may hear about how you got fired, but it still seems too extreme to be worth the trouble. If you get laid off normally sometimes you can get unemployment benefits. – Mark Rogers Mar 03 '17 at 16:55
  • Please specify the country. Employment laws as well as customs vary between countries. – Val Mar 04 '17 at 07:04

10 Answers10

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Anything serious enough to get you immediately fired is serious enough to jeopardize your future career.

Don't do it.

Hand in your notice and either negotiate with your employer to leave before 4 weeks, or just stick it out.

Kaz
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    Okay, you know what. I figure I'll take your (and everyone else who answered) advice... I'm gonna try and split the notice period into 2 weeks before I leave and come back for 2 weeks when they hire my replacement so he know's what's going on.... This whole thing seemed more badass on Better Call Saul –  Mar 01 '17 at 15:16
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    @NonExistant it's always easier to do things when you can ignore reality and the long term impact of your decisions. – enderland Mar 01 '17 at 15:17
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    @NonExistant: Very smart proposal, just be prepared to do 4 weeks in a row in the unlikely event that the replacement is found early :) – Matthieu M. Mar 01 '17 at 15:45
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    @NonExistant I don't think your planB will work, since it'd require your new employer to give you 2 weeks off very shortly after you start to go back to your old one. Just do your 4 sequential weeks if you're not able to negotiate a shorter period. – Dan Is Fiddling By Firelight Mar 01 '17 at 16:15
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    Anything serious enough to get you fired immediately would be worse for your reputation than just quitting without notice. – stannius Mar 01 '17 at 16:27
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    be upfront with your current employer, they will quite likely let you leave early – Pixelomo Mar 01 '17 at 16:49
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    Better Call Saul is fiction, where events and outcomes are made by writers. Life isn't an AMC tv show. – Kevin Mar 01 '17 at 17:56
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    @stannius It is a contract. Depending on where he lives and what the laws are, that isn't necessarily true. It may be far worse due to legal consequences. – JMac Mar 01 '17 at 19:10
  • @JMac Well, it depends. You could probably contrive an example. But most of the things you could do to get fired quickly are probably going to be worse, and may also expose you to criminal and/or civil liability. It depends of course on jurisdiction, but also the specific company - how fire happy are they? And how sue happy are they? – stannius Mar 01 '17 at 21:04
  • I am a contractor that was in a very similar situation. In short, my contract did not specify a work location so I negotiated with my current employer to serve my 30 days notice outside of the workplace. I then negotiated with my new employer to give priority to work done for my old employer for 30 days while I worked onsite for my new employer. A complicated arrangement, but everyone was happy and I've since done work for both of them on and off. – am21 Mar 01 '17 at 21:12
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    "Reality" TV is anything but. Don't base your career decisions on it. – FreeMan Mar 01 '17 at 21:12
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    I'd just add that getting fired may jeopardize not only your future employment, but even the one you're jumping to now. It's possible that your new employer, upon learning that you were fired from the previous job, will say "No, we don't need new trouble" and revoke their job offer. – Lesser Hedgehog Mar 02 '17 at 03:01
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    Are you absolutely sure that "contract ending December 2018, 4 weeks notice" doesn't mean that OP has to resign by November 2018 to leave after December 2018, but is not allowed to leave earlier? @RichardTingle asked for this in a comment on the question, but I cannot find a clarification! – I'm with Monica Mar 02 '17 at 15:00
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    @NonExistant: if you think Saul Goodman is a “badass” then you may not have been paying full attention. – Paul D. Waite Mar 03 '17 at 10:15
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The issue is, the only way you are going to get sacked in this sort of way is to do something deemed Gross Misconduct. So it's unlikely to be able to do this in a "safe" way.

What you could do (and I have done this before) is hand your notice in and request an early departure date. This isn't guaranteed but it does work. If you make sure you prepare everything you can for handover and prove to management that you can achieve this then it may be accepted. (For reference I had a 3 month notice period reduced to 1 month as I provided a plan for handover).

Another option is you could breach your contract. Say you are quitting then no longer attend. Technically (and depending on location etc) they could take legal action against you for breach of contract, so you need to bear this in mind.

Also remember that holiday dates acrued (so Pro-Rata how many days you get a year into 2 full months (assuming a Jan-Dec year) ) you can take to end earlier.

Finally, consider how bad it may look to your new employer if you do something to get yourself fired. It doesn't look very professional (especially if your new employer ask for a reference).

If I were in your shoes, hand your notice in, then in 4 weeks you'll be in your new job. Ask for an earlier departure, but you'll at least know that in 4 weeks you'll be sailing off into the sunset. Don't do anything stupid that could potentially affect that.

Andrew Berry
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  • IANAL but technically if he quits and doesn't come back, he's still officially working for his old place and isn't legally allowed to start another job during that period – Pierre Arlaud Mar 01 '17 at 15:55
  • I suppose that's country dependant as well, I know in the UK the ex-employer could seek an injunction to stop person working, but this only happens with senior positions due to costs etc. – Andrew Berry Mar 01 '17 at 16:00
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    @PierreArlaud: There's in general no law against two concurrent employee contracts, and many part-time employees do in fact have two jobs. – MSalters Mar 01 '17 at 16:01
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    @MSalters That's also country-specific. – Pyritie Mar 01 '17 at 17:07
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    @Pyritie There's really a law that limits people to only a single gainful employment? That seems exceedingly weird, which one do you have in mind? Certainly not the case in Western Europe or the US, but the world's a bigger place than that - I'd be interested in the reasoning. – Voo Mar 01 '17 at 17:31
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    I think the idea is that your vacations are for recovery, not for working at a different place. – Paŭlo Ebermann Mar 01 '17 at 18:36
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    @Voo India does, there are actually a lot of questions on here where people are having problems because of it. – JonK Mar 01 '17 at 20:07
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    @JonK Very fascinating indeed. – Voo Mar 01 '17 at 20:11
  • Any job with a 4 week notice period probably has a noncompete also, whether or not it's enforceable is debatable... – Joe Mar 01 '17 at 20:15
  • @joe I have had many jobs with said notice and no no-compete clause. Depends on the industry the op is in – Andrew Berry Mar 01 '17 at 20:17
  • @Joe: 4 weeks (or even longer) is very common in Europe, so it doesn't need to be. – Erik Mar 02 '17 at 07:32
  • Depending on the industry and company, when he resigns he could be shown the door straight away. – Snowlockk Mar 02 '17 at 09:11
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    There is no law, but usually job contracts have clauses that forbids employee untertaking any other job activity without written agreement of employer, at least by mental jobs in Central Europe. –  Mar 02 '17 at 13:39
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    I don't think there's any "Technically" about them taking legal action against you. They can and they might. – user253751 Mar 03 '17 at 03:57
  • There actually is law in germany. See, your working hours per week are limited (by law) and your employer has a right to your full work power for the 40 or so hours of work. A secondary job needs to be approoved and is not allowed to interfere your main job, or the approval can be rejected. – TomTom Mar 04 '17 at 12:35
  • @PaŭloEbermann - "... the idea is that your vacations are for recovery...". That's a hoot! Vacations are part of the recruiting toolkit, and once you're in the door the last thing your employer wants you to do is to actually take vacation (which amounts to paying you to NOT be there). That's why companies are switching to "paid time off" instead of "vacation" - that way they can say "yes - you get THREE WEEKS of paid time off" without explaining that two weeks of that gets used for holidays (in the US), and with the remaining week you can either take vacation or get sick - your choice. – Bob Jarvis - Слава Україні Mar 05 '17 at 13:19
  • @BobJarvis maybe I'm coming from a too Europe-centric point of view here. – Paŭlo Ebermann Mar 05 '17 at 16:14
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Depends on the wording in your contact of course. If there's a fee for breaking your contract within the 4 week notice period, you'll have to suck it up and pay it.

Your current employer might wish to waive that clause. It's worth discussing before you self-sabotage.

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    Agree, either serve your 4 weeks or pay the penalty. The new employer may offer to pay the penalty for you to get you on board faster. – David K Mar 01 '17 at 14:12
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Lots of industries are "smaller" than they seem. Anything you do to get fired from a job might get passed around the community and could limit your future hiring potential. So doing this is short-sighted as it is much harder to fix a reputation as an untrustworthy, irresponsible idiot than it is to get one.

Companies, for obvious reasons, prefer not to hire people who are known to have screwed over past employers. People you work with in the current job, may be the hiring officials for a job two years down the road. Those people are the ones who feel the brunt of the pain in fixing the mess when you quit without notice. Even if they liked you before, they will now have a negative impression of you.

So really stop thinking of behaving like a five-year old, grow up and leave on a professional note. Real life is not some TV reality show and you shouldn't take career advice from such things.

What you should do is accept the new job, tell them you are legally required to give 4 weeks notice and give that notice. During the notice period, you need to behave professionally and do everything you can to turn over your work in such a way that whoever gets the assignment won't be floundering from lack of information. No matter how much you hate where you work, this is the only professional way to handle things. No one is happy about working a notice period because they wouldn't be leaving if they were happy. But most of us manage to do just that. Be grateful you didn't have a 3 month notice period.

If you want to leave earlier, you can request that. Your chances of getting that are improved by including a transition plan with your resignation letter. In some countries, you may be asked to pay out money to leave early and that is what you should do if they ask for it and you want to breech your contract. If your new company wants you earlier, you can ask them if they would be willing to pay something up front to get you out sooner. Alos check your personnel handbook, you may or may not be allowed to take vacation time during the notice period, but if you are then you can shorten the time actually in the office by using that time.

If your new company is not willing to wait for a legally required notice period, that is a big red flag that they are a bad employer. Companies that expect you to take illegal action, like breeching a contract, are not too concerned about legalities that might affect you.

HLGEM
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Talk to both employers, and calmly discuss it.

The outcome might be completely different than what you think.

A smart HS teacher once gave his classroom some sage advice:

Boys, when you quit a job, never burn your bridges behind you. Leave on good terms; smile, thank him, and shake his hand no matter how bad the boss is. You'll regret telling him what you really think!".

Once you give your notice, those four weeks will seem like some few days.

And as HLGEM stated:

If your new company is not willing to wait for a legally required notice period, that is a big red flag that they are a bad employer. Companies that expect you to take illegal action, like breeching a contract, are not too concerned about legalities that might affect you.

Well said, indeed! There will be other jobs.

You've received some superb advice from others in this thread. Think very carefully before you act, friend.

Mike Waters
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    And discuss this with your prospective employer FIRST. :-) – Mike Waters Mar 01 '17 at 20:29
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    This! As a matter of fact, any well-organized employer should ask candidates during the hiring process when they will be able to start, and take that into account when hiring. – sleske Mar 02 '17 at 15:45
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Personal Experience: I was trying to get a very generous severance package from a large telecom in the US that was being offered to those who were to be laid off, as I already had another job lined up.

I tried the routine you suggest: I was insubordinate, condescending, arrogant, the whole bit. I was SURE I was going to be the one laid off.

They PROMOTED me! (I took the other job, anyway.)

Your actions are not always interpreted how you wish them to be.

Get your prospective employer to give you the 4 weeks. If they're serious, they'll make it happen. Put in your 4 weeks. Tell your boss you'd like an early out if possible. Hope for the best.

Wesley Long
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As others have already stated, getting yourself fired on purpose is a bad idea. Most of us work in a fairly specific job and people "in the industry" know each other.

There are ways you could potentially get around the 4 weeks:

-Have you accrued vacation time? Book 4 weeks off and show up on the first day of your holiday to give your 4 weeks' notice.

-Does your prospective new employer know you have a 4 week notice period? It really depends on what the job is, how bad they want you and how hard it is to find someone who's almost as good as you, as well as how high up in the company is the person hiring you. For example, I've been hired directly by the CEO of a very rich, but very small (in terms of employees) company. I've also been hired by the #14 highest up in the HR department of a shitty, but massive conglomerate. Depending on the situation vis a vis, who wants you at the new company and how badly they want you, you may be able to ask them to help you negotiate an early release. Failing that, if you're honest about needing time to get started, is it out of the question that they wait a little bit for you?

-Have you informed your current employer that you're unhappy? Have you informed them you're accepting another position? They may be sympathetic. Then again, you stated that you're unhappy with the work, and with the workplace. Is management part of what you're unhappy with? If so, would they be petty enough to torpedo you if you just spoke with them honestly about your concerns or about your plans? There are a myriad of possibilities that could come from speaking honestly with your boss, and a lot of information we don't have to help you predict what outcomes are most likely. Could or would they intentionally screw you over if they found out you were leaving? Could your current job become the job you want it to be? Is it possible that they'd fire you automatically upon receiving your notice? I once had a really bad day in a management position due to an incompetent sub-manager misplacing (on paper) almost $100k, adding a couple hours to my shift while my gf waited in the parking lot and I wrote my resignation letter right then and there. Turns out it was the unspoken policy of the company to pay out full severance to and fire on the spot any person at my level who put in their notice. I didn't know this beforehand, because they didn't want people taking advantage, but they also didn't want high-level people who weren't going to stay with the company to be on the premises.

-How are your finances, how big is the company you want to go work for and how unique is this position? If for some reason you just can't get out of the job without trickery, the new job won't help you and won't wait for you either, how often does this job come up? Are we talking about going from McDonalds to KFC? Dishwasher to Fry cook? Mailroom to CEO? Is this a once in a lifetime opportunity to get your DREAM JOB or is it something that you could get hired on to next month, next year? If none of the other parties can work around you, can you afford to just quit, do your notice period and take your chances? Will you be effed if you leave this job and the new job falls through or can you afford to wait - unemployed - until you get what you want?

To sum it up (honestly, I'm bad at summarizing, this might be just as long as the above)

First, consider your situation. You know a lot that we don't, so our advice is worth less than you want it to be.

Second, be honest about your situation, but decide who you should be honest with first. The new employer or the old. Who is more likely to help you? If it isn't the new job, I'm not sure why you're switching.

Third, if you're committed, just do it. Be professional, but just go. Just say "I'm out, here's my notice." If they say "ok, see you for the next 20 work days," well that's just how it is. But maybe they'll say "you don't want to be here? K, FU den, gtfo, here yo money is, baibai!" Or some other unprofessional thing, and then you'll know you made the right decision.

Fourth, (chronologically, but actually most important) believe in yourself. You got an offer for this job you want. If they won't wait for you, well screw 'em. Their competitors will hire you.

Fifth and (FINALLY!) finally, grow the fuck up, man: Work sucks. I hate it. All the other people who have given you advice hate it, too. Even if it's your dream job. Even if it's your own business. Even if it's easy AF, it isn't doing what I want to do when I want to do it because I want to do it. We all get to a point in our lives when we realize what we don't like about our jobs isn't about the job but about ourselves. Ask yourself, is this a life lesson that you've learned yet? I mean really think about that. Do you hate your job because it's a bad job or do you hate your job because you haven't yet resigned yourself to the fact that people pay you for catering to their priorities and don't give the slightest fraction of a percentage of a shite what you think or how you feel? Cos that's how life works. I have 26 employees, and remembering having genuinely shitty bosses, I try and make things as good for them as I can, but at the end of the day, they do the job they agreed to do on contract-signing day or they worry about how to pay the bills, and I don't give a half a percent of a crap about which one they choose, because the wage I pay is way way more than fair for the work.

No matter what you choose to do, in the end, be a grown-up about it and let us know how it went.

jaret217
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If you have say four weeks notice period, that means your employer can force you to work for another four weeks and has to pay you. It doesn't mean they must do that.

So the simplest way with a decent chance of success is to go to your boss, tell them that you want to leave, tell them you have four weeks notice but would like to leave earlier, and they either accept an earlier date or not. It often doesn't make sense for the company to keep employing and paying someone who doesn't actually want to be there.

Remember there are places where you give notice and they tell you to pack your bags right now and leave the building. They are unlikely to insist on four weeks notice, because that means they have to pay you.

gnasher729
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With 22 months to go on your current contract, you probably need competent legal advice. Several respondents have questioned the 4 week notice issue. Under some contracts that might only be available to you after Dec'18. Another interpretation might be that you just need to give 4 weeks notice. Your current employer might want you leave on the spot and pay you out. Others might want you to work out your notice.

Did you discuss the terms of your current contract with your prospective employer? If they really want you they will help you get out of your current contract quickly and painlessly.

If the job is with a competitor, then there could be other considerations, e.g. non-compete clauses.

If you want to be respected for being a professional, then you need to conduct yourself impeccably in all circumstances. A bad rep is very hard to shake. I have seen many co-workers and managers do dubious things and they all ended up paying a far greater price than their short-term gain.

CyberFonic
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Don't try to get fired or so. Close or transfer pending work and negotiate with CEO only on grounds of loosing career, package and future growth and ask for quick settlement and waiver of notice period maybe by surrendering salary for the notice period. Before that try to finish and offload most of work.

SACn
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