Marketing officer Harold found the freedom he was yearning for after he was offered a managerial role in another company, but his dreams of a less-stress life was put on hold after his boss rejected his resignation letter.
The 26-year-old is the next in line to become a marketing manager, according to his boss. However, he feels he can't stay longer due to the toxic work environment.
“Nakaka-disappoint din if your boss doesn’t support your choices. I know they only want what’s best for my career, but they shouldn’t be holding me back,” Harold, who refused to give his real name, told reportr.
Resignations shouldn’t be this hard, as managers should accept that at some point, even their best employees will look for greener pastures in another company or industry, a human resource practitioner said.
“Resignation is a natural part of the employee life cycle. Hindi yan pare-pareho na mags-stay forever or ng five or 10 years,” human resources and labor relations consultant Rhonadale Florentino told reportr.
“So kapag nag-resign sila, don't hold it against them. Terminate the employer-employee relationship on a good note,” she added.
Why your boss won’t accept your resignation
Managers may have different reasons for rejecting the resignation of their employees. Sometimes, they just want to give their subordinates time to think about their decision, Florentino said.
“Managers also understand na minsan nagiging emotional si employee, bigla na lang magbibigay ng resignation. So they give the employee time to think about the finality of that decision,” he said.
Often, a resignation gets rejected when the team is undermanned, and the manager has yet to find a replacement for the resigning employee, Florentino said. An unfinished task or project is also one reason why leaving is not yet possible.
“These are good reasons basically because hindi naman mini-mean ni manager na pahirapan si employee, wala siyang malice. It's just because of the current situation that he or she is in,” she added.
Not all managers have good reasons for rejecting a resignation, though. There are some who just don’t want to lose an employee that they look for ways to delay the resignation, Florentino said. Others even pressure their employees to stay by making turnovers and endorsements difficult for them, she added.
But can your boss actually refuse your resignation?
No, your boss can’t prevent you from leaving, especially if you’ve rendered the 30 days of work required by the law before your resignation takes effect, Florentino said.
Under Article 285 of the Labor Code of the Philippines, an employee may terminate the employee-employer relationship “by serving a written notice on the employer at least one month in advance.”
“As long as si employee ay nag-send ng 30-day notice niya, employers cannot reject that. Regardless if may kapalit or tapos na yung turnover or kung ano pa man, employers cannot reject that,” Florentino said.
Other employees may have to serve more than 30 days before the resignation takes effect, depending on what’s stated in their employment contracts, she added.
The only time that the employer may defer a resignation is when the employee doesn’t render the required 30 days of work.
“For example, nakalagay sa kontrata ay 60 days pero ang gusto ni employee ay 30 days lang yung ise-serve, pwedeng sabihin ni employer na no, you have to render the 60 days,” Florentino said.
Can you resign even without completing the required 30 days? The Labor Code states that immediate resignations are only allowed in cases where there is serious insult by the employer, inhuman and unbearable treatment on the employee, or the employer committed a crime against the employee.
“Other than these reasons, hindi pwede ang immediate resignation. Let's say hindi mo lang feel yung environment, nagagalit ka sa boss mo, masyadong mababaw yun. Kailangan pa rin niyang mag-render ng 30 days,” Florentino said.
How about irrevocable resignations? Florentino said this doesn’t really serve any purpose especially if the employee fails to render the required 30 days.
“Ganun naman kasi nagwo-work yung batas natin. If it's something that does not follow kung ano man yung established laws natin, it doesn't hold any water,” she added.
How to convince your boss to let you go
If your boss doesn’t want to accept your resignation, here are a few tips from Florentino:
Work your last 30 days
Make sure to render your last 30 days at work or the period indicated on your employment contract. It’s the surest way your boss can’t say no to your resignation.
“Don't try to contest that unless the reason why you are resigning falls doon sa allowed reasons for immediate resignation,” Florentino said.
Organize your turnovers
As soon as you send out resumes to prospective employers, organize the tasks and projects you need to turn over to your colleagues. This way, you boss can easily let you go when your resignation date comes, Florentino said.
“Yung preparation na ginagawa mo sa paghahanap ng trabaho, do the same thing doon sa mga kailangan i-turnover. So that when you do file your resignation, konti na lang yung kailangan i-turnover at wala nang masyadong hihingin pa sa inyo ang boss mo,” she added.
Don’t burn bridges
There may come a time that you will encounter your manager again in another setting, so it’s best not to cut them from your life completely, according to Florentino.
Florentino advised managers to understand the reasons why their employees leave and take it as part of their career growth.
“Kahit umalis siya, huwag sasama ang loob. Hindi naman forever nasa inyo ang empleyado,” she said.
“Parang jowa din yan. Kung hindi na kayo nago-grow pareho, bakit mo pipilitin na mag-stay sayo?” she added.
Rhonadale Florentino is a human resources consultant and strategist who serves as CEO and President of UpRush Social Geekers, an HR consultancy company. Access their services here.
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