It's a job; not a cult. People come and go. If I were working somewhere that made me feel like I couldn't leave without being super secretive about it, that would be a huge red flag.
What do you think happens once a company knows you are looking for a job and then you don’t get the new job? Do you think they are going to give you the plumb assignments? Raises? Promotions?
If you think Australia is some utopia where the advice isn’t the same
> What do you think happens once a company knows you are looking for a job and then you don’t get the new job?
Maybe it depends how useful you are. IME, they're grateful to have you say a while longer.
One of the guys I work with had accepted another job and was virtually out the door when the new job fell through. My company gladly welcomed him back, kept giving him challenging work and eventually promoting him.
A couple of months ago I told my boss and my boss's boss I was going to start looking for other jobs. They tried to see if there was something that'd make me stay, and when there wasn't, they were 100% supportive. If I said tomorrow "actually, I've had a change of heart, I'd like to stay" they'd be genuinely pleased. This has basically been the story my whole career.
Sure, if your boss is an arsehole they'll do arsehole things. My advice is not to work for arseholes.
There is no way I’m going to let my current job know that I’m looking for a job. That would be completely illegal advised.