Can You Be Fired If Your Boss Finds Out You're Leaving, Or If You Give Notice?

So you told your boss you might be quitting. Or you gave notice that you're leaving in three months. Can your boss fire you or shorten your notice period? The answer is probably yes.

I assume you don't have a contract saying you can only be fired for cause. Assuming you don't, you're an at-will employee who can be fired for any reason or no reason at all. They can't fire you for an illegal reason, like discrimination, but can fire you for any other reason.

If your boss knows you won't be around much longer, then she can protect herself by looking for a replacement. Once your boss finds out you're leaving or even thinking about leaving, you're probably on your way out. From your boss's perspective, it isn't really fair to your boss to leave her in limbo about your plans. That means she is within her rights to hire someone to replace you and send you on your way.

I suggest you keep your plans to yourself until you are 100% sure. If you dither with the dates, yet telling her you'll be gone eventually, you have alerted her that she'd soon have a vacancy. The better plan is to wait until you've booked the moving vans and sold the house, then give a few weeks of notice.

However, even if you give notice, your boss doesn't have to honor it. You can be fired for giving notice, which is pretty stupid on the boss's part if you ask me. Who would ever give notice if they do this to employees?

To sum it up:

• Your boss doesn't have to wait until you give notice. Once they know you're leaving, replacing you is fair game.
• Your boss doesn't have to let you take back your notice. If you said you were leaving two months ago, then changed your mind, you are probably gone.
• You don't have to call it "notice" or anything specific for it to be official. If you say you're leaving soon, you just quit.
• Your boss can shorten your notice. If you say you're leaving in October, they can say goodbye to you in August. They don't have to let you work out your notice period. You're terminable at-will unless you have a contract saying otherwise. 

My one caveat is if you know of other employees of a different race, age, sex, national origin, or other protected category who were treated differently, then you might have a discrimination case. However, your damages would be limited to your notice period, so that may not be worthwhile pursuing.

Be careful what personal information you share at work. If your employer finds out you're planning on leaving, you may be out the door sooner than you think.