Is my exit strategy bad career karma?

On the plane from Vancouver to Toronto I watched Tangerine dream on my laptop and thought about how I am going to move west. This is not the "if" I should move west, this is the "how" portion. I spent the week out there doing some job hunting and making the final decision on Vancouver vs small ski town. In all this I came up with this exit plan from my currnet situation.

Starting in January I get access to my 4 weeks paid vacation for 2006. I could book off the first three weeks of January and use this paid vacation to move west and chase powder. At the end of this three weeks road trip I leave my truck and all my stuff in Vancouver and fly home. First day back into work after three weeks off hand in my resignation with two weeks notice.

Is quitting my job after three weeks paid vacation a bad career move? Is it bad karma? I don't hate my current job, and it's a great job with a good company, but I am moving west for skiing and riding.

What do you think? Bad karma? Bad career move? Or just do what banks the most cash with the fewest days worked?

One thing that I would consider is if you ever plan to ask your current employer for a reference in the future. If the answer is yes, I say that you need to leave things on the most positive note possible. Quitting after a 3 week paid vacation is slightly suspicious and manipulative. That said, if you don't plan on asking for a reference in the future and there are no foreseeable consequences that you will suffer, go fucking ski.

you are p.i.m.p.

It's pretty common, and supported by law to request your vacation pay when resigning, so it probably won't be looked too poorly upon, just don't be a jerk about it, and maybe let them know that during your time off you found a life that suits you much better.

another thought is, if you resign, can't you get paid out that vacation that you earned? Money in the bank baby.

Umm, if it's truly vacation, and not "Pto" or some other HR bullshit, you get the 3 weeks paid as part of your last check. don't burn bridges, it's a small world.

When I moved to Mammoth, I gave a notice that I would be on two weeks vaca and on my last day before the vaca gave my notice. Then I got paid out my last unused week of vaca.

Or you could be like my co-worker recently.......get your 2% bonus from the bike shop and your signing bonus from earlier in the summer that they owed you and put in your two week notice the day after only to have them tell you to just not come in anymore after handing you a final check and your unused vaca pay. Then move to South America.

I know US HR rules but not Canadian. In the states there is not federal mandate but each state has their own laws regarding payout of vacation time. It is basically up to the company of how it structures earning and accruing vacation or pto hours. In most firms you accrue vacation hours per pay period. For instance, in your case if you were paid twice a month you would accrue 6.67 hours of vacation per pay period. Most firms allow you to roll over unused hours or go into the negative if you are a good employee. In your case if you had no banked hours you would be in the negative by taking three weeks before the vacation is actually earned. If you skip town in the neg the company can come after you, press charges, sue for legal costs etc etc. I kid you not because I have been on the employer side of this battle and it can get ugly for the employee. However, you can take the gamble that the company will just write it off as it is not worth it but you would be surprised how most firms try to stick it to an employee.

If your present firms policy is not to accrue hours as you go and you are immediately vested in all vacation hours at the beginning of each year then by all means stick it to the company because when all is said and done most don't give a shit about the employee and would hang you out to dry if needed.

option one, embezzle money from the company and use it to pay for heli trips
two, gun down your boss and coworkers
those are the logical choices

Ski your ass off!! :p

On the reference issue I know the company policy is to not provide a reference or employement history. They will only confirm time employed there. So this part works in my favour. But it would be nice to have my manager as a personal reference.

Tomorrow I will dig up the employee hand book and see what it mentions about leaving and unpaid vacation time. As I would be leaving in early Jan 06 it would depend on how they accrue the vac pay to see what I am actually eligable for as a pay out.

More research needed. Going to see if I can ask HR questions annonymously.

def look into getting the vacation $$ when you quit and not actually having to go on vacation. it makes sense from their end to do it, cause they avoid the scenario you have laid out. also, it will save you a trip back and forth. you might miss a storm...

Seconded. It's much better to leave on good terms rather than leave with your company feeling used. Of course, I'm sure they used you, but still......don't take vacation and then cash out on good terms. Good luck....

That and you don't want to leave your co-workers hanging.....that is if you are friends with them... If you don't like them then that's a different story!