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Ask HN: Is it right to give 1 month notice for switching to remote position?

8 points by aliencat ↗ HN
I work as a system admin for a private company in Canada.

I recently had notified my employer that I am leaving the country for 4 months and want to work remotely during this time. I have made up my mind that if they are not ok then I will just quit, because I really need the time away.

The top management were not happy, not happy at all, even though my manager is ok with it. They said that I should have informed them months in advanced, instead of leaving them a hole to cover up. And now they have to offer me the position because they have no choice and cannot hire another person at this time.

Now my question is: Am I at fault here to give a month of notice in advance. I quit my last job with 2 weeks notice and my boss was ok with it. But this is different, because I am asking to continue working.

Thanks!

10 comments

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FBISurveillance
I think 1 month notice is really fair. Your job is not slavery so not that you have to work for them for 6 month out of "guilt" or because they haven't thought about bus factor.

After all, it's management's fault that they don't have someone to take care of your responsibilities in case of your illness for instance.

I know that finding good SREs is extremely hard but this works both ways IMO: if they can fire you with 1 month notice, you can politely assume that all your actions are fair with 1 month notice as well.

Personally I think it means a lot how they ask you to stay. It worth nothing to them to ask you politely, as a favor to stay a bit longer, e.g. 6 or 8 weeks. I would consider that scenario, because shit happens. But if that was more like an ultimatum I don't think company is worth it.

aliencat
Hi,

Thanks for your reply, you actually makes me feel better :)

angersock
They're not your friend, they don't ultimately care about you or your career. 1 month is, frankly, generous on your part.
aliencat
Haha, good to know we think alike
cgore
I think if two weeks notice is fine for quitting, a month is more than fine for nearly any real change.
agitator
Totally generous. Don't feel bad for a second. They literally just told you they are not happy because they don't have enough time to not extend you an offer.
jklein11
I'm not sure employment law in Canada, but if you were in the US I would say that this would be a completely fair thing to do. After a quick google search it does look like it is a little bit more difficult for employers to terminate employees and so this may have put them in a tight spot.

It seems to me like you have some leverage that you have with this company and top management does not like this. I would be prepared for them to try to take away this leverage by hiring to fill this skills gap, cross training, etc.

At the end of the day I think you did the right thing. You could have left them in the lurch by giving them two weeks notice and walking, and even then no one will hold that against you. At the end of the day I think any reasonable party will realize you are being fair with them, as long as you continue to deliver high quality work and remain transparent with them.

mike-cardwell
Weird. In the UK, your notice period is generally part of your contract. If you're made redundant, they have to give you the same notice period as if you resign. I've had 3 month notice periods in the past but my current is 1 month.
tarr11
Fault is not really the point that you should focus on. I'm sure you are within your rights to leave in the time frame you've specified.

It's generally better for your career to leave on good terms. Otherwise, they may not be willing to be a reference for you.

Also, it is a small world; you may run into these people in the future.

matt_the_bass
One thing to be aware of is that in some industries you are removed from your position as soon as you announce your plans to quit. In the us 2 weeks is typical.

I recently had an employee quit after 6+ years. Because we had a good relationship, he gave me the heads up that he was looking to move on about 6 weeks before he formally gave us his notice.

Note he still gave 100% during that time. He’s leaving on a good footing.