I'm working on a bit of an FU money story and trying to make sure it doesn't turn into an F-ME money story, wondering if anyone has some experience with employment law or HR.
*I am a salaried, exempt employee at Megacorp
*Have worked here for 16 years, always been a good if not great employee per performance reviews
*Took a new position last year that was not working out well for me, although still meeting expectations
*This year after fighting the good fight repeatedly to try and improve things and not getting anywhere, I started to voice my displeasure with the role a little more and was moved (not asked, just moved) into a new/temporary position when my director went out on leave.
*At the time this happened, the role that I had been in was technically eliminated
*Wanting to get out of my department and start fresh, I went through the application process for a job that seemed interesting in a different area, but did not get it (bit of a stretch, so not surprising but wanted to try and stay with the company if possible)
*At about the same time, I find that a project I have been avoiding for years and repeatedly said no I'm not interested if it was part of any job I was looking at/asked to look at, which also requires working on some weekends will now be a part of my temporary role if I take it (which everyone is expecting me to because ya know...CorpMerica)
*I flex my mustachian muscles, and say no, I'm not going to work on weekends, knowing that this could be the end of the line
*Currently waiting to hear back from HR what my options, if any, are. But honestly at this point, I took my shot to stay with the company after not being happy for a while, and didn't get it. There aren't any options currently available outside my group, and I've come to the conclusion that I can't be happy in my group. It's time to leave and I'm ok with that.
My 'stache is in good shape, a few years short (2-3) of where I wanted to be in my perfect world exit strategy, but this is why we do what we do. I'm excited to start the next chapter in my life.
I work in a very litigious industry and have never trusted HR to protect my interests. Perfect world they would offer me severance to sign an NDA and stay on as needed to transfer my knowledge, but I'm honestly not that important and due to being in the temporary role most of what I needed to train someone else on was already done. I know plenty of people that have left for short term disability, sued, sandbagged it until they got fired, I don't want to be that person...especially where my director and 2vp are people that I have worked with and respected for a long time. I know that they need the position to take this project, that's the reality of the business. But all I want right now is more freedom and more meaning. The first they won't give because of the culture and the second they really can't give me. No animosity, it's just time to move on.
But I feel like HR (who drives all the decisions mostly unless someone really high up gets involved) is going to make me resign and say no severance/no unemployment because you resigned. I think this scenario is a little more grey than usual with the old job being eliminated and me never truly accepting a new formal position, just having the temporary one they stuck me in. I'm not sure how much the weekend thing matters either because I'm exempt. To me, that's not an equal job offer, but 99% sure that's not how it will be looked at and I did (begrudgingly when it was sprung on me - part of the reason I hated it) work some Sundays in the last job.
Sidebar: felt so damn good to have the power to say no :)
