Resigning due to health or stress

Can you resign without notice because of stress?

The notice you have to give when you resign comes from your award, enterprise agreement or employment contract. Our guide to the notice period when resigning works through how much you need to give and the common award scale in full. Award notice periods depend on how long you've worked for the employer, and the Fair Work Ombudsman's Notice and Redundancy Calculator shows what yours requires.

Some people don't have a notice requirement at all. Casual employees don't have to give notice when they resign. If you're not covered by an award or agreement, you only need to give notice if your contract says so, although you might need to give reasonable notice when you have no written contract or it doesn't mention notice.

The Fair Work Ombudsman's guidance on resignation doesn't set out a separate rule for leaving because of illness or stress, so the usual notice requirement still applies. What you can change is how that notice period is spent, which is where sick leave and an agreed early finish come in.

Taking sick leave during your notice period

Full-time and part-time employees can take paid sick leave during a notice period. You need to tell your employer as soon as possible and give evidence if they ask for it, such as a medical certificate. Paid sick leave covers time when you can't work because of a personal illness or injury, and the Fair Work Ombudsman's guidance says this can include stress.

This means that if your doctor considers you unfit for work, you may be able to resign and spend some or all of your notice period on sick leave, depending on your balance. Full-time employees build up 10 days of paid sick and carer's leave each year and part-time employees build up a pro-rata amount. The balance carries over from one year to the next, so if you've been with your employer for a while you may have more than you expect.

Your employer can ask for evidence even for a single day off. There's no fixed form it has to take, but it needs to convince a reasonable person that you were genuinely entitled to the leave. A medical certificate and a statutory declaration are both examples of acceptable evidence.

It's also worth knowing that unused sick leave isn't paid out when your job ends, while unused annual leave is. Annual leave can be taken during your notice period too, but only if your employer agrees.

Asking to finish earlier

You can ask your employer to let you stop working before your notice period ends. The Fair Work Ombudsman lists an agreement between employer and employee as one way to end the notice period early, and your employer may prefer a settled last day to an uncertain stretch of absence.

You don't need to share a diagnosis to have this conversation. You could say that you're not well enough to continue and would like to agree on an earlier finish date. If your employer agrees, ask them to confirm the new last day in writing so there's no confusion about your final pay.

What happens if you leave without the full notice

If you stop working without giving the notice you're required to give, the consequence is usually financial. Most awards allow an employer to deduct up to one week's wages from your final pay when you haven't given the right amount of notice, as long as the deduction isn't unreasonable. The deduction can only come from wages owed under the award. It can't be taken from your leave entitlements or from over-award payments. An enterprise agreement can include similar terms, so check yours if you're covered by one.

If you're employed under a contract only, the effect of leaving early depends on what the contract says and your circumstances. The Fair Work Ombudsman (13 13 94) can explain how the rules apply to you, and a community legal centre can help if you need advice about your contract.

Before you resign, consider whether leave would help more

If you'd like to keep the job once you've recovered, time off may give you that option in a way resigning doesn't. Employees who can provide evidence of an illness or injury are protected from being dismissed because of their absence for as long as they're on paid sick leave. Once paid leave runs out, the protection continues while the absence is less than three consecutive months, or less than three months in total over the past 12 months. State and territory workers' compensation laws can add further protection.

A change to how you work might also make the job manageable. After 12 months with the same employer, some employees can make a formal request for flexible working arrangements, such as different hours or fewer days. People with disability and carers are among those who can ask, and a casual employee in one of those groups can ask if they've worked regularly and systematically for the same employer for at least 12 months. Your employer has to respond in writing within 21 days. Outside that formal process, you can still ask about reduced hours or a period of unpaid leave, which your employer may agree to.

If work is the cause of the stress

Under the model work health and safety laws, employers must eliminate or minimise psychosocial risks as far as is reasonably practicable. Psychosocial hazards are things at work that can harm someone's mental health, and Safe Work Australia's examples include job demands, poor support, bullying, harassment and poor workplace relationships. If one of these is behind how you're feeling, you could raise it with your manager, HR or a health and safety representative, or contact the work health and safety regulator in your state or territory.

Workers' compensation for a psychological injury, such as anxiety or depression, may be available when work is a significant contributing factor. A claim may not succeed if the injury arose from a reasonable decision or action by the employer, and each state and territory runs its own scheme with its own rules. If you think you might claim, speak to your state or territory's workers' compensation regulator before you resign so you understand how leaving could affect it. If bullying is involved, our guide to reporting workplace bullying explains the Fair Work Commission's stop-bullying process.

Sometimes an employer's conduct leaves an employee with no real choice but to resign. The Fair Work Commission can treat that as a forced resignation, which counts as a dismissal. It's up to the employee to show that they didn't resign voluntarily, and the Commission describes the line between a forced and a voluntary resignation as a narrow one. Applications for unfair dismissal or general protections dismissal must reach the Commission within 21 days after the dismissal took effect, so get advice promptly if you think this applies to you.

If you resigned in a difficult moment

An employer can usually treat a clear resignation as final. The Fair Work Commission recognises that a resignation given in the heat of the moment or under extreme pressure can be different. In those circumstances an employer may need to allow a reasonable amount of time to pass, and may need to check that you really meant to resign if you tell them it wasn't intended. In one case the Commission describes, a letter sent while the employee was distressed and unwell was held not to be an effective resignation.

If you resigned while you were unwell and want to take it back, tell your employer as soon as you can, and put it in writing.

Money after you finish

Your final pay should include any unused annual leave, with leave loading if you'd normally receive it when taking leave.

If you can't work for a while, check whether your super fund provides income protection insurance. Most super funds offer default cover, and it usually replaces part of your income if illness or injury stops you working. Policies have waiting periods and their own definitions of disability, and some require you to work a minimum number of hours. Moneysmart suggests asking your fund what happens to the cover if you change jobs or stop contributing, and it's worth asking that before your last day.

JobSeeker Payment may be available if you're sick or injured and can't do your usual work for a short time. Services Australia's rules say that leaving a job without a reasonable excuse can mean waiting four weeks before you're paid. The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations paused those decisions in March 2025. When you claim, explain that you left for health reasons and keep your medical certificate handy in case you're asked for evidence.

What to say in your resignation

A resignation for health reasons doesn't need to say much. It should state that you're resigning and give your last day, and you can mention that health is the reason if you want to. If you're hoping to finish early or use sick leave during your notice, you can raise that in the same message.

For other wording and help working out your final day, see our resignation letter templates.

Where to get support

Your GP is a good place to start, both for a medical certificate and for help with what you're dealing with. Under Medicare's Better Access initiative, people with a clinically diagnosed mental disorder and a mental health treatment plan can claim a Medicare benefit for up to 10 individual and 10 group therapy sessions each calendar year. If your workplace has an employee assistance program, ask whether you can keep using its counselling service while you work out your notice.

For support at any time:

• Beyond Blue: free counselling by phone on 1300 22 4636 or by webchat, 24 hours a day.
• Lifeline: crisis support on 13 11 14, at any hour.
• Emergency: call 000 if you or someone else is in immediate danger.