No no...let's be real here. I have read up on almost all the states' regs about this and very rarely can the state charge an aide with abandonment. We need to have our facts straight before spewing off fictions.
First of all, when an aide walks off the job in the middle of a shift it isn't usually called true abandonment. If you're the ONLY aide on duty and you walk out, then it is abandonment. When there is even ONE other aide working, it is NOT.
Nurses get charged with abandonment far more often than aides because there is often only on on duty.
And even then the state and BON's tend to be lenient.
We all have the right to quit our jobs. People do it everyday= at factories, at offices, at McD's, wherever...and most states are of the variety where we can do this. Legally speaking, if we walk off the job and leave patients in true jeopardy, then the state BON can report this to the AG- but they don't usually do this. Why? Because they don't want to public to know of the horrid conditions that always lead us to walk away...and we can bet the nursing homes don't want it known either.
Most facilities will threat and make noise. But most the talk is just rhetoric with no legal standing.
Walking off the job does have it's consequences though. You'll never get a good reference, you will be known in the area as someone not dependable; you will have trouble getting another job as an aide.
It's better to finish out the shift and then quit- leave a note with your ID and other company properties. Be clear with it- that you are done.
BUT you won't face fines and civil legal actions and all those other tales of bulloney.
