What To Do When An Employee Says, "I Quit."

Brian Bell

Toronto Employment Lawyer Brian Bell - So, you are a manager of a mid-sized company and it has been one of those days. Everything that could go wrong, has.  Sometime during the day, one of your sales people comes into your office with just another “lame excuse." You challenge what the sales person is saying.  The conversation gets heated, and voices get louder. Within minutes, the sales person states that they do not deserve to be treated like this. They finish by saying, "I quit," and then walk out of the office.

Question: Has this person truly resigned?

I recently encountered a situation similar to the one above.  Employers beware: resignations given in the heat of the moment may not be upheld in a hearing.

Resignations that are upheld are generally supported by a resignation letter. Such a letter will help confirm that an employee gave considerable thought to leaving employment.

In the case I was dealing with, the employee, in the heat of the moment, said he was quitting right then and there.  No resignation letter was provided at the time, nor was one to follow.

When this type of thing happens, the employer should proceed with caution. Before taking the employee's word for it that they have quit, the first thing you should do is give everyone - yourself included - a few days to cool off. Then wait to see if the employee contacts you. In a lot of cases, when the parties calm down, the employee could very well rescind their “resignation,” and they are allowed to do so.

In the case I was involved with, three to four days had passed with no contact from the employee.  I then advised the employer to confirm in writing with the employee that since we had neither received a letter, nor heard from the employee, we were concluding that their oral resignation was valid and all appropriate documents would be forwarded to the former employee as required. That is where the case ended.

It doesn't always work out that way. For a peek at how things can turn out poorly for you if you take an angry conversation as a resignation, you should look at this case from BC. In it, an employee laid his company keys on the table, wished the company luck, and walked. Sounds like a resignation, doesn't it? Not so fast. Read the article and see what the judge decided.

Taking the necessary steps to confirm and reaffirm the actions of the former employee are sure to reduce the risk of problems for the future.