Resign or be fired

[kingrat]

The president of Cincinatti University has given an ultimatum to their basketball coach, Bob Huggins: resign or be fired.

Would you rather resign, or be fired? Does your answer change if the ultimatum is semi-public (i.e., your next employer will know that your leaving wasn't entirely voluntary) ?

Me, I say go ahead and fire me or lay me off. Legally, it's a lot easier for me to get unemployment or go after the employer for wrongful termination if that's the case. Resignation means I have to argue that I was constructively fired. And in reality, I am always pretty clear about the reasons for my leaving companies with future employers. For instance, in 1999, I was let go, or laid off by Syndeo Systems. In reality, they fired me because I was burned out and burned up over the company's mismanagement that normally had me working 60 to 90 hours weeks.

The idea that resignation is somehow better I just don't get. I suppose in some circumstances for high salaried execs it might. But everyone knows when someone leaves for personal reasons they have been fired. Unless the person is announcing their plans immediately (such as going to another company, writing a book, raising the kids), they've been forced out. Sometimes even if plans are announced, they've been forced out. But so often it seems to me companies don't realize that everyone knows. And I'm sure sometimes they want everyone to know, they just don't want to say it. That sort of thinking just doesn't make much sense to me.

Comments

why I chose to resign

[cagekitten.livejournal.com]

I once worked for a company that was sort of prejudiced. Management considered their Quality Assurance department to be less than them, to the point where folks in the department were not even allowed to get up for coffee or bathroom breaks unless they could do it during their 15 minute scheduled break. I was part of that QA department and kept coming up with all these great money making ideas for the company. When management refused them all, I pulled together all kinds of data from other departments and used it to put together hard core proof of how much money they would make every month (if they implemented my ideas) and gave the reports to the owner of the company. The bosses did not appreciate this (since they had passed on my ideas) and tried to pressure me into quitting. I fought back, refusing to quit, and I guess they were afraid to fire me without cause.

Here's the best part, they finally offered me 3 months salary to leave quietly. I took the money, found a new job in two days, and used some of that extra 3 months hush money to take a backpacking trip through Europe. Severance money is a damn good reason to resign, as apposed to waiting to be let go.