Employee sends in their thoughtful resignation letter, manager responds with a "thumbs up" emoji

JR Atkinson • Writer and Editor

Jul 22, 2026 9:00 PM EDT

What would you do if your manager replied to your resignation with a "thumbs up?"

Emojis are wonderful things. What did we do before we had them? How did we express emotion over text or lighten the mood? I'm a huge fan of peppering in emojis where I see fit. The right one takes a good text to a great text. They can also be useful at work. A quick thumbs up is a great way to acknowledge a message without having to respond. It's efficient and zippy. In a lot of workplaces, it's an acceptable way to communicate. But there is a time and a place for emojis, and this situation was not one of them. This situation called for a bit of professionalism, which seemed to be lacking on this day.

When you resign from a job, you're probably putting a lot of thought into it. You're making sure that you leave on good terms so that you can use them as a reference. You're poring over your resignation letter, making sure it says what you need it to say. You're wondering how it's going to be received, and you're making plans for your exit. You're approaching it how you should, and making sure all your boxes are ticked off. But then your manager decided to burn a bridge. You can't help it when this happens, but you can complain about it. And that's what this employee wanted to do.

My managers response to my resignation.

My Name Resignation Inbox - Notice of D me Jul 20 Manager Please let me know if you have any question... Manager to me < 9:29 AM Manager reacted to your message: From: My Name Sent: Monday, 20 July 2026 20:49:46 Manager My Name To: Subject: Notice of Resignation

Took the time to write out a nice and really formal resignation letter trying to be cordial to this company that has been awful to me for almost a year. My manager didn't respond the day I sent it and then this morning I get an email back that's just this. My last day can't come soon enough at this point. But hey I guess at least she acknowledged it instead of ignoring my messages like usual

Edit: okay, a lot of assumptions going on here, so let me give some context, I am the manager of a small team of Class A CDL drivers. I've been a great employee and always gone above and beyond. My employees have always been really comfortable coming to me about everything, and the site I manage specifically

asked for me to continue stay with them when they transitioned to another company, so its not like they were trying to get rid of me. Which I know it's hearsay but idc really, I'm just trying to make the point that my manager did not have any reason to reply to me in what I feel like is a extremely unprofessional manor.

She is the regional manager and has always been very deadpan with me and everyone, so it was not really a unexpected response in the least, I'm just sharing it because it's always been irritating to me and has been a major factor In my decision to leave for sure. It's exhausting to work for someone who treats you like you're less than since day one. In fact usually i just get no response at all, so for her this is like writing a book i guess.

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