Your gossipy boss has just told you that a co-worker friend of yours is getting fired, or maybe you accidentally saw some paperwork you shouldn't have. Do you tell your friend?

Sally Horchow, co-author of "The Art of Friendship," says no. "In work life, it's your responsibility to look out for number one, not to get in the middle of a friend's professional issues. Being a good friend in this situation means being supportive and helpful to her when/if she gets fired," she explains.

Ali, a consultant in Washington, D.C., agrees. "You really shouldn't know that. I would stay out of it and let the person who is supposed to do the firing handle the situation."

Once it's been done, Ali doesn't think you should say anything to your friend about knowing before she did. "Just think how terrible your friend would feel knowing that people were gossiping about it."

And if she asks, "Did you know this was happening?!" after the fact, it's white lie time. Only bad things can come from stammering, "Uh, well, not for sure, I mean ..." She's feeling bad enough right know without knowing that you withheld major info.

Click here for three more reasons to keep your trap shut.

She could freak out. Telling your friend prematurely could hurt your career. "What if she has a complete meltdown when you tell her and goes back to your boss to let her know that you spilled the beans?" asks Lynn, an account manager in Omaha. "Unless she was a really close friend and you could predict how she would react, I don't think I'd put my own neck on the line." She could also feel conspired against and lash out at you: good old Shoot the Messenger Syndrome.

It could make you next on the chopping block. Bob, a former HR specialist, points out that the fact that your friend is going to be fired is probably highly confidential. If your boss thinks you tipped her off, you could get canned next. Sure, that's a lot of Ifs, but it's not worth the risk.

You can stay loyal to her in other ways. Prime her for change without letting on that you know something by saying things like, "I hear there are more layoffs coming," or, "I saw this job listing that sounds right for you." Jamie, a research associate in Washington, D.C., believes that if she were performing poorly enough to warrant getting fired, it probably wouldn't come as a complete surprise when it happened. "If I worked with a really close friend, I would hope that she would say something, or at least start to prep me with subtle hints."

Then again, there is that pesky Golden Rule. Rachel, who works at an advertising agency in Manhattan, says that if her friend knew she was going to be fired, she would want to know right away. "Because the economy is so bad and jobs are hard to come by, a heads-up from a friend would give me the opportunity to prepare my resumé and start looking for a new job before getting tossed out on my ass," she says.

Tell us! What would you do if you found out a friend was getting fired?