Can My Boss Keep My Last Paycheck if I Don't Put My Two Weeks Notice In?

If you quit a job without notice, do you still get paid? According to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938, or FLSA, your employer must pay your wages for hours worked and may not withhold your wages under any condition. If your employer refuses to pay you for your time worked, your employer can risk sanctions by the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division, the federal agency that enforces the FLSA. There are other laws that can determine how soon you receive your final paycheck in California and Wyoming, and individual company's policies determine if you receive any unused vacation pay or are eligible for rehire.

The FLSA requires that employers pay employees for hours worked, but the act doesn't require that employers issue a departing employee's final paycheck immediately upon resignation. Instead, the federal law defers to state laws that might require employers to hand over your final paycheck immediately. The FLSA does strongly recommend that employers provide the final paycheck by the next regular payday. If you don't receive your final paycheck on the next scheduled payday, contact your local office of the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division for assistance in getting your pay.

Depending on the state you're in, the law may dictate how your employer handles issuing your final paycheck. You're prudent to check your state law. For example, if you're in California and you provide three days' notice, your employer has to issue your final paycheck within three days. California employers may be required to pay a penalty if they don't issue your paycheck within the state-mandated time. If you're in Wyoming, your employer has to issue your final pay within five days regardless of how much notice you give.

Your decision to resign is based, in part, on your prerogative according to the employment-at-will doctrine. The doctrine isn't a law, but it's a widely accepted business practice in practically every state except Montana. The doctrine says the employer or the employee has the right to end the working relationship at any time, for any reason, with or without notice. Although the doctrine often is interpreted as one-sided in the favor of employers, the truth is that employees have equal rights under the employment-at-will doctrine. Therefore, the practice of giving two weeks' notice isn't a requirement -- it's a professional courtesy.

Some employers implement workplace policies to discourage employees from exercising their rights under the employment-at-will doctrine and to avoid potential challenges the company might face if an employee doesn't provide two weeks' notice before resigning. Although employers often exercise their rights under the employment-at-will doctrine when they terminate employees without notice, they can make it difficult for employees to make the same decisions about continuing the employment relationship. For example, some employers warn employees that if they don't give two weeks' notice before quitting, they could be deemed ineligible for rehire or they risk forfeiture of their vacation time. Denying vacation time to employees who don't provide two weeks' notice is against the law in California, a state known for its employee-friendly laws. California law says that an employee's earned vacation time is similar to earned wages, and therefore, cannot be withheld based on whether the employer gives notice of resignation.