I am starting out with a disclaimer that the content contained in this post is compiled from my research and based on my experience. It is my story, my truth.

This is the second of the 3 part series of #WestwardNo. So as I researched the content for this article I expected the most relevant source was going to be the military. For you see in my not so distant past, I was given a list of to do’s on my last day of active duty. They gave me 2 weeks to do it, and ended with me scraping that God awful blue sticker off my Mercedes and streaking out the front gate, giving the finger to the MP in my rear view mirror. So imagine my surprise when the most applicable source was from my alma mater, Mary Washington College. They developed and posted on line a Outprocessing-Guide-2017-06-16 (1) that I truncated for the purposes of my getting the ham-sandwich out of Oregon…

Resignation Letter

Everyone dreams of telling  the obnoxious manager go and sit down somewhere. Walking up to the hellhound VP and telling them exactly where they can stuff that ridiculous report. Or walking into a Board Meeting and giving them all a collective,”Bite Me” and walking out. But because no one wants to catch a case, we have to be a bit more PC. You have to write a formal resignation letter(more than a emoji of yourself dropping the mic). It should detail your last day. Most are only 2 lines, you can elect to detail reasons for leaving but that is not necessary. Your former employer knows exactly why you are leaving. And please make sure you have copies of communication between your supervisor or HR of any claims of breech or wrongdoing. Most positions only require a verification of employment. If you left on your own terms and didn’t require references from your former position, you really don’t have to tell them where your next position is.  It is not like it will be much of a secret in the world of overshare on site like LinkedIn and Facebook. But, if a former employer decides to interfere in anyway in your next position, it can be libelous and grounds for legal action.

Clinical Privileges, Malpractice,Certifications, And Licenses

I have a resuscitation certification and license renewal I have to complete, because I will be practicing part time. You have to be clear with the facility when your privileges will expire. Also, request a Certificate for insurance because verification of coverage is part of any subsequent privilege verification process.

HSA-Health Savings Account

Contributions are transferrable, the debit cards come with you. There maybe an option to transfer funds to a personal account but I wouldn’t because there could be a lag time from the time you leave your current position and when benefits are available at your new position. You will need that cash for doctors visits, medication refill, and other unexpected medical expenses.

Pension Contributions

This can be tricky. There could be a huge tax penalty for early withdrawal and you may forfeit any matched funds from the employer. But if you have another retirement account of which I have 2, and one of which I created in 2005(403b with Oppenheimer) I will transfer that money once I leave.

Orders Sign Off

Definitely make sure all verbal or telephone orders are signed prior to your last shift.

PTO Balance

Make sure the accrued hours are accurate and cash it out. I wish I could afford to be altruistic and donate it back to company…not happening.

A Full Day in HR Completing Odds and Ends

• Final check, manual or direct deposit.
• Return any training materials and equipment
• Date access removed from EHR and intranet
• Return ID Card, keys, uniforms, parking decals
• Complete Exit Interview and Evaluation-In my case, not a good idea. They know why I hate the lot of them.
• Forwarding Address, Permanent change of address and PO Box close out.

 

Sign On Bonus or Combat Pay

Finally, out of all the previous steps this is 1 of the main points of contention. Return of any bonuses owed. When the HR rep told me this, I was like, “You have got to be kidding me. I don’t owe you anything. And this should be considered combat pay. Like combat pay, it is not taxable.” Most employers want some guarantee of this upfront money. Be careful, the bigger the sign on bonus, the crappier the position. It guarantees indentured servitude and should act as a deterrent for early termination of an employment agreement by an employee. But there are some cases that work conditions are so contentious and if you can prove breech of contract, which is a legal cause of action and a type of civil wrong, in which a binding agreement or bargained-for exchange is not honored by one or more of the parties to the contract by non-performance or interference with the other party’s performance. You have to be careful in failing to pay this back, because you can be in breech, make arrangements to pay the bonus back in good faith, but fair warning to the employer, that does not negate future legal action to get the return of the bonus and payment of a contract in full. It is never cheaper to keep a disgruntled employee, and weigh is it worth trying to extract 10K from the employee or go through the hassle of legal action and having to pony up almost 500,000+ in lost wages to the former employee?

I personally do better with definite goals and checklists. I hope the previous discussion will be helpful. I welcome your comments and requests for further discussion.