Leave for a new job when I know I will be taking a sabbatical in 6 months?

[patch45]

I've been at my current company for several years, but some big changes are coming, to the point where I'm considering looking for a new job. The wrinkle is that I will be taking 6 months off work, starting in April of 2021.

All the 6 month contract jobs that I've heard of through recruiters sound non-interesting, not to mention the fact that I would ideally like to start my sabbatical < 6 months from when I would actually be able to start.

I've found some more interesting full time positions that I would love to work at if I did not have a sabbatical coming up, but I'm wondering of the implications for my resume/marketability of working somewhere for 5.5 months, with 6 months of nothing.

Any advice?

[Metalcat]

No.

You should not take a new job if you intend to leave it in under 6 months for a 6 month period.

I mean, you could, but it's highly unlikely to end well.

[FIRE 20/20]

Can you add any extra details?  In most industries that I'm familiar with this would be reasonable justification for blacklisting someone.  I suppose there are certain industries when this might make sense - ski lift operator or other seasonal work might qualify, and some kind of specialized work like consultation with 1-2 month gigs back to back I suppose.  But in most fields I've worked in if someone knowingly came in, worked for under 6 months, and then left expecting to find their job still available when they returned they would not be welcomed back.  And that kind of behavior in my industry gets around so it would make getting a job in the future much harder.  But again, other industries may be very different. 

[Sibley]

Nope. You'd be blacklisted in my field too. If you want a change, either just change jobs and forget about taking 6 months off, or quit when you're ready to take 6 months off. If everyone took sabbatical then quit right afterwards they'd be even more rare.

[I'm a red panda]

Granted, a sabbatical is not something I'm familiar with in real life, I've never known someone outside of academia to take one.

But in my industry, nearly every company you are in a probationary period for 6 months to a year.  If you left at 6 months, you wouldn't be coming back.
I doubt they are so sophisticated as "blacklisting", but it seems unlikely you'd be getting a new job at the same company at the end of your sabbatical anytime soon.

[patch45]

I should add more detail. I am a software engineer, first off. 1 year is definitely the commonly defined "minimum" stay at any gig.

To clarify my plan: I am at company A. I would consider joining some company B. I will not be working from April - October, no matter where I am working come April. This is not a sabbatical so much as me quitting my current job and finding a new job at a new company when I get back. Poor choice of words on my part. When I come back I will work at company C (whether I am working at company A or B come April)

[slappy]

I should add more detail. I am a software engineer, first off. 1 year is definitely the commonly defined "minimum" stay at any gig.

To clarify my plan: I am at company A. I would consider joining some company B. I will not be working from April - October, no matter where I am working come April. This is not a sabbatical so much as me quitting my current job and finding a new job at a new company when I get back. Poor choice of words on my part. When I come back I will work at company C (whether I am working at company A or B come April)

So why leave company A now? Why not just leave in April?

[patch45]

I should add more detail. I am a software engineer, first off. 1 year is definitely the commonly defined "minimum" stay at any gig.

To clarify my plan: I am at company A. I would consider joining some company B. I will not be working from April - October, no matter where I am working come April. This is not a sabbatical so much as me quitting my current job and finding a new job at a new company when I get back. Poor choice of words on my part. When I come back I will work at company C (whether I am working at company A or B come April)

So why leave company A now? Why not just leave in April?

Can't really get into the specifics, but major changes are happening, to the point where it's not unreasonable to think that I and many others could be laid off within months. If things were just business as usual at company A, I wouldn't even entertain the notion of switching jobs now

[therethere]

Layoffs usually come with payoff packages. I'd stick around hoping to get laid off, and planning for the potential of starting my sabbatical early. It's also a really nice justification for why you had time off. Any specific reason why you have a hard target of April?

[patch45]

Layoffs usually come with payoff packages. I'd stick around hoping to get laid off, and planning for the potential of starting my sabbatical early. It's also a really nice justification for why you had time off. Any specific reason why you have a hard target of April?

Whoo man I would love to get laid off with a severance around March or April. The reason for the hard target is I am hiking one of the long trails in the US (e.g. PCT, CDT, AT), and snowpack on the starting end with mountain winter looming ~5 months later dictates that you have to start within a fairly short window

[Metalcat]

Yeah, that's a lot of detail that was necessary for making sense of this.

I still don't recommend taking a full time job at company B, especially not if you know that you won't possibly come back after the 6 months off.

I would not want to be burning bridges in my industry when facing a likely job loss and banking on another job that isn't even available for almost a year.

All this during Covid where things can change rapidly.