Q: I work for a company under an “at-will” employment agreement.
I am planning on resigning and giving 2 weeks notice. However, I would like to make my final 2 weeks contingent on getting paid a retention bonus. If my employer rejects the offer, my plan is to resign effective immediately. Are there any potential legal ramifications if I make this kind of demand from my employer?
A: I suspect most employers would be offended that you are asking for a "retention bonus" in order to provide your two week notice and let you go immediately. Further, many employers have a policy that they will not rehire employees that fail to give to week notice. On the other hand, some employers will terminate employees when they give a two week notice, so it is important to know the company culture before you decide whether to provide two week notice.
A:
As an at will employee you have the right to leave immediately without notice unless you have contractually agreed to give a defined amount of notice. Similarly, your employer can terminate you immediately upon receipt of your two week notice, and that happens a great deal of the time.
You can try to negotiate any kind of deal you want, but your employer has no legal duty to do as you wish.
Good luck to you.
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