> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://handbook.helendelovely.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# At-Will Employment

> What at-will means, and the one way it can change.

Your employment with the practice is at will. That means you can leave at any time, for any reason, with or without notice. It also means the practice can end your employment at any time, for any lawful reason, with or without notice.

Utah is an at-will state by default. We say it here in writing so there's no ambiguity later.

## What does not change at-will status

* This manual, or any policy in it
* Your offer letter, unless it says otherwise in a signed writing
* Any performance review, raise, bonus, or positive feedback
* Any statement by a manager or coworker
* Length of service
* Any verbal assurance about future employment

## The one exception

Only a written agreement that specifically changes at-will status, signed by Helen De-Lovely as owner, can alter it. Nobody else in the practice can make that promise, in writing or otherwise.

## What at-will does not mean

At-will does not mean we act without reason or without care. We give notice when we can, we follow the [corrective action](/leaving/corrective-action) process when it fits, and we never end employment for an unlawful reason such as discrimination or retaliation. It means that neither of us is locked in. That's the whole point, and it protects you as much as it protects the practice.

> **Why.** Written at-will language removes the argument, years later, that a handbook or a kind word created a contract nobody intended. Clarity now is kinder than a dispute later.