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Q&A: Resignation from Employment
Q&A is a recurring series on the Vey Willetts LLP Blog. The aim is to provide quick answers to questions we commonly encounter in our day-to-day practice of employment law. In this edition, we focus on resignations.
Resignation regrets: Employee's failure to provide reasonable notice of departure costs him $56,116.11
When employers think of reasonable notice, they tend to be concerned with whether sufficient notice of dismissal is provided by the employer to the employee. However, an important subject that garners far less attention is what notice a departing employee must provide to the employer.
The duty to provide reasonable notice of resignation is one implied by the common law. It has no equivalent in Ontario employment law legislation, such as the statutory notice employers are obliged to provide (at a minimum) when dismissing an employee. Regardless, whether through popular convention of television and media, or some other social norm, there exists a perception that a departing employee must give their 'two weeks' notice.' The question for employers is whether such notice is sufficient and, if not, what can they do about the problem?