Quitting Macy’s? What You Need to Handle Before Your Store Closes or You Walk

With 150 Macy’s stores closing by January 2027 (66 closed in 2025, another 14 slated for 2026 as part of the company’s “Bold New Chapter” restructuring), you may not have the luxury of a slow, planned departure. Whether you are resigning voluntarily or your location is on the closure list, the clock is ticking on your portal access, your Payactiv earned wages, your discount privileges, and your benefits. Handle these now, not later.

Quick Reference: Macy’s Exit at a Glance

Deep Dive: The Resignation Process

How to Submit Your Resignation

Tell your People Leader (manager) in person. Macy’s does not have a self-service resignation option through My Insite or any other portal. Your manager enters the separation into the HR system.

Give written notice with your last day. An email works, so does a handwritten note. Two weeks is the norm. Macy’s is at-will, so no legal obligation, but the separation code your manager enters depends on whether you gave notice.

This applies to all three Macy’s Inc. banners: Macy’s, Bloomingdale’s, and Bluemercury. The HR system is shared. If you work at Bloomingdale’s or Bluemercury, the process is identical.

If Your Store Is Closing

You are not quitting. A store closure is a layoff, and the distinction affects your unemployment eligibility. If Macy’s is closing your location and has not offered you a transfer to a nearby store, your separation should be coded as a reduction in force, not a voluntary resignation.

Confirm this with your People Leader or District HR before your last day. A wrong code can delay your unemployment claim. If your store is on the closure list, you should also receive advance notice under the WARN Act (60 days for locations with 100+ employees). Some states require even more notice.

For unemployment guidance, see how to file unemployment after being fired.

If You Are Seasonal and Were Just Not Scheduled Again

This happens constantly at Macy’s. Seasonal hires brought on for the holiday rush often find that their hours drop to zero in January without any formal conversation. Macy’s will eventually process you as a separation, but the code they use matters.

If you want to come back next season, call your People Leader and ask how you are being coded. “End of seasonal assignment” is different from “job abandonment” or “voluntary resignation,” and it gives you a cleaner path to returning. A five-minute phone call can save you a rehire headache.

Your Macy’s Employee Discount: What Stops and What Does Not

The Macy’s employee discount is one of the more complicated ones in retail, and it has specific rules around separation.

What you lose: Your 20% discount on most items (10% on electronics, furniture, mattresses, and rugs), the periodic extra 10% events that bring the total to 30%, and any employee pricing on Bloomingdale’s and Bluemercury merchandise.

The charge card requirement: Macy’s requires you to use a Macy’s credit card or prepaid card to receive your employee discount. You cannot use cash, debit, or a non-Macy’s credit card. This is the number-one complaint from Macy’s employees about the discount program. After you quit, your employee pricing is deactivated, but your Macy’s credit card still works as a regular credit card (you just pay full price).

Do not use the discount after your last day. Even if the system has not caught up yet, post-separation discount usage is flagged by loss prevention.

More on the program at Macy’s employee discounts.

Payactiv: Get Your Earned Wages Out

Macy’s partners with Payactiv to let employees access up to 50% of earned wages before payday. If you have been using Payactiv, transfer any available balance to your bank account before your last day. Access to the Payactiv platform ends when your employment ends.

Wages you already transferred are yours. Earnings from your final shifts that were not yet transferred through Payactiv will be included in your regular final paycheck through normal payroll.

Final Paycheck and PTO Payout

Macy’s pays biweekly. Your final check arrives on the next regular payday after your last shift.

PTO payout depends on your state. In mandatory payout states (California, Colorado, Illinois, and others), Macy’s includes your accrued unused PTO. In other states, payout follows company policy, which generally favors employees who resigned with notice.

Macy’s offers flexible time-off for salaried positions, which does not accrue in the same way as traditional PTO and typically has no payout on separation. Hourly employees accrue PTO on a standard schedule.

State-by-state timing rules at Macy’s final paycheck laws.

Benefits After Separation

Health insurance: Ends the last day of the month you quit. COBRA notice follows by mail. Given the pay at Macy’s (average around $14.68/hr for sales associates), COBRA premiums can feel steep. Check into Medicaid eligibility after job loss or marketplace plans if your income qualifies.

401(k): Your vested balance stays in the plan until you move it.

Macy’s Discount Mall: Your access to the non-Macy’s brand deals platform ends with your employment.

Full details at Macy’s benefits after termination.

W-2 After You Leave

Getting your W-2 from Macy’s after leaving is the most common complaint from former employees. My Insite access is deactivated after separation, and the paper W-2 process has been unreliable for many people.

Your best bet: TheWorkNumber.com. This is where Macy’s directs former employees for W-2 retrieval. You will need your Employee ID and may need to create an account.

Your W-2 is also mailed to the address on file by January 31. Update your address in My Insite before your last day. If you have moved and did not update it, contact Macy’s HR to correct it.

More at Macy’s W-2 for former employees.

Rehire Eligibility

• Resigned with notice, good standing: Eligible to reapply immediately.
• Resigned without notice: Typically 90 days.
• Seasonal end of assignment: Usually eligible for the next season with no wait.
• Terminated for cause: 6 to 12 months or permanent, depending on severity.

With 150 stores closing, available positions are shrinking. Being rehire-eligible at Macy’s means less than it used to if there is no store near you to apply to.

Before Your Last Shift

• Download pay stubs from My Insite (hr.macys.net/insite/). You lose access fast.
• Transfer Payactiv balance to your bank.
• Update your mailing address for W-2 delivery.
• Return your name badge and any store-issued devices.
• If you have a Macy’s employee credit card with a balance, remember the card does not close when you quit. You still owe any balance. The card just becomes a regular Macy’s card without employee pricing.
• Password reset link for reference: pwr.macys.net (Employee ID + last 4 SSN). Portal details at Macy’s login portals.
• HR contact for post-separation issues: full guide at Macy’s HR contact.

Macy’s is in the middle of a major reshaping. Whether you are leaving by choice or because your store is on the list, the priority is the same: download your records, transfer your Payactiv balance, confirm your separation code, and know your state’s rules on PTO payout. Everything else can be sorted after you leave.

For more Macy’s employee resources, visit the Macy’s employee hub.