What is the difference between desertion and resignation?
When your employee leaves your work premises, without permission, but does not intend to return, is this a case of desertion or resignation?
Desertion means that an employee leaves his place of work, without permission, with the intention of never returning. This practice goes beyond being AWOL (absent without leave):
- Your employee’s intention not to return must be made clear through his words or conduct. For example, if one of your employees leaves without permission and is then found working for someone else, you may conclude that it is his intention not to return because of the way he has behaved.
An employee who ‘resigns’ from your employment, without proper notice, is, strictly speaking, deserting your company. In theory, you could ‘charge’ your employee with desertion but this will be a waste of time, in most cases. You can simply rely on the fact that your employee has cancelled his contract by leaving without giving you a proper resignation (a form of misconduct) and dismiss the employee for that reason. This assumes, of course, that you have sufficient evidence that your employee has indeed resigned and failed to give proper notice.
A more reasonable option may be to wait until the contractually required notice period has run out. The employment relationship will come to an end when this happens.
