There’s a new type of candidate circling the hiring pool: the boomerang employee.
An American study by Kronos and WorkplaceTrends.com shows a changing mindset about hiring boomerang employees—someone who left an organization, for whatever reason, and then rejoined that same organization at a later date.
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Nearly half of HR professionals claim their organization previously had a policy against rehiring former employees—even if the employee left in good standing—yet 76% are more accepting of hiring boomerang employees today than in the past. Managers agree, as nearly two-thirds say they are now more accepting of boomerangs.
While only 15% of employees have boomeranged back to a former employer, nearly 40% say they would consider going back to a company where they once worked.
In the past five years, 85% of HR professionals have received job applications from former employees, and 40% say their organization hired about half of those former employees who applied.
HR professionals (33%) and managers (38%) agree that familiarity with the organization’s culture is the biggest benefit to hiring back former employees, while nearly one-third appreciate that boomerangs do not require as much training as a brand new employee.
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But while the overall acceptance of boomerang employees has changed direction, HR professionals and managers still have concerns. Nearly one-third of HR professionals and managers claim boomerang employees have a stigma hanging over their heads that they might leave again, and more than one-quarter say these employees may have the same baggage they originally left with.
More than 1,800 human resources (HR) professionals, people managers, and employees took part in the study.
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