mrken30

You will be eligible for unemployment insurance after working for a year. This is not means tested in the US.

Owen778

Is that something you can actually claim if you are not a permanent resident or citizen, though? If you lose your job, then you are out of status and would need to leave the US.

mrken30

I didn't think about that. I bet you still have to pay unemployment insurance even though you are unable to claim.

Pulaski

Unemployment insurance is managed at a state level, so it varies from state to state. In NC, I believe it is currently only payable for 26 weeks. In the period following 2008 there was additional federal funding that paid it for 52 weeks or maybe even longer.

Bear in mind that it is a personal fund based system - so you can only draw on it when you have paid into the fund. If you lose your job a second time soon after taking a job following an extended period of unemployment you may find there are no funds to claim on for your second period of unemployment.

cautiousjon

If you're on a visa, that's definitely true. If you lose your job and your visa is tied to the company (as in the case of most employment-based visas, like L and H class), you're immediately out of status, and you have maybe two weeks before you must leave the country. I know of a few people who were put in that position and were able to immediately file for change of status to B2 (tourist) so that they could have a bit of breathing room to wrap up their affairs in the USA. It's doubtful that you'll be claiming any unemployment benefits while you're wrapping up your affairs.

caleyjag

Like you, when I first started my job in California I was quite bemused by the whole at-will thing. Made me feel quite insecure.

In reality, since then I've survived two large-scale RIFs where everyone who got laid off got pretty tasty settlement packages. To the point where those of us left behind were wondering if we really got the better deal!

I work for a large company that can afford that kind of thing, so my experiences won't apply across the board. My point is, just because there is at-will verbage in your contract, it doesn't necessarily mean your employer is going to treat you like shit.

Hopefully you get lucky with a good one!

barua

"I acknowledge that this employment relationship may be terminated at any time, with or without good cause, at the option of either the Company or me, with or without notice"

Does this say that neither of us have to give any notice or reason to leave/fire?

Noorah101

Yes.

Rene

barua

Thank you.

Pulaski

In practice, if you don't give your employer a couple of weeks notice you can likely say goodbye to any prospects of ever working for the same company again in future, and depending on the connectedness of the business and its employees, possibly any other similar business in the same town/area.

mrken30

Why would you leave a company if you had intentions of going back. Normally if it gets to the place where I want to leave a company, there is good reason and those reasons will still be there if I go back.

Pulaski

Many of my colleagues have left and come back. It seems to be the best way to boost your salary as you can get a bigger pay-hike if you're hired from outside than if you switch jobs internally, when rises are capped by HR policy. It is also not uncommon for external hires to quit after a couple of years to go back to the company they came from.

scrubbedexpat091

Standard practice out of courtesy to the employer is 2 weeks.

But it's not required in most cases, just don't expect to ever be hired again at said company or where references are done, expect a positive reference.

Jerseygirl

Always wise not to close doors behind you.

mrken30

That is true, but life generally moves on , not back. But unless things change a lot, if you were unhappy enough to leave, you will probably feel the same after a while if you move back. No point in being unhappy, life is too short.

How long should you keep answering questions for from ex co-workers once you leave a company? I am still getting questions well over a year since leaving.