Should I Really Give Two Weeks Notice?

I am old school. Employees and Employers need to learn to be respectful and take care of people's needs. Makes sense to give a 2 week notice for 2 reasons: 1) gives employer time to have employee write up the tasks of the position, provide any training necessary to leave the job well. 2) gives employee time to wrap things up nicely for employer and maintain goodwill in relationships. All that Machiavellian crap about bad actors is only encouraged and validated by the attitude above. Build it this way, and you can expect bad actors. Not too bright.

We need a world of work that does work for everyone and one that has standards of trust and professionalism. Or we get a punitive work environment that fosters distrust and anger and resentment. We have 101 million workforce people unemployed or no longer counted thanks to this attitude. We don't want draconian policies to add stress to a work environment because these invisible people could go postal eventually. Clean it up. (Current stats on workforce here http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.t01.htm

@Michael W thanks for your comment. So unfortunate that the company responded the way it did. It is professional courtesy to give a company at least two weeks notice so that they can start making arrangements to replace you. Hopefully the company you used to work for realized its mistake and has taken steps to correct the way they respond to notices. Everyone moves. The typical time frame for staying in a position today is about 2 years. The days of being hired and retired from the same company are pretty much over except for maybe those associated with a union. Hopefully you are much happier in your new position. Remember, no bad-mouthing your former employer on social media. These things have a way of coming back and biting us in the butt. So the best things all of you can do is to move on.

I worked for a company that notoriously fired people when they gave their 2 weeks notice. I advised several employees that worked there to not giver their 2 weeks notice. I in fact left 6 months later, gave my 2 weeks and was promptly told I was fired. I told my boss that firing me for giving my 2 weeks notice would make him look bad and cause backlash he didnt care and did it anyways. in less than 5 weeks half a dozen other people quit without notice and he was so upset becuase several of the employees told them they didnt give 2 weeks because of the way i was treated (I was really beloved there and the employees threw a goodbye party to me out of their own pocket).

@Sean thanks for your comment. I agree - to a point. Sometimes it is just not possible to give two weeks notice. Let's say that you interviewed for and got this great job - something you have been seeking for a long time. However, they want you to start in a week and, if you can't, they will rescind the offer! What do you do then? I agree that in most cases it's better to give that two-week notice or more, if you can. But sometimes you just have to take that chance - take that leap and deal with the consequences.

If you are working in such a hostile environment that you might be harmed for quitting, you should have resigned already. Other than that, in most job situations, this is really bad advice. The fact is, if you don't give at least two weeks notice, you will burn bridges, most likely in your own industry. Most employers and supervisors understand, if sometimes reluctantly, that people need to leave for a better job. Leaving them in the lurch which could damage the company or cause grief for the co-workers you leave behind, is not just unethical, it is a bad career plan.