It is a good policy to periodically review your policies to make sure they are doing what they are supposed to do. If the policy regarding former employees is supposed to help the company hire the best applicants, it may be falling short.
There are some managers who fervently believe that if an employee quit working at their company in the past, he or she will probably do so again. Of course, these managers will then go on and gladly hire someone else who has most likely quit his or her last job, or was fired from it.
Former employees should be screened in the same way as other applicants. One advantage is that since they are known commodities, some of the guesswork in the hiring and placement process is removed. In addition, former employees who are rehired typically feel extra positive about the company, as they have seen what things are like at the competition. And further, as other employees hear what the rehired employees have to say, they may be less likely to consider leaving.
Good employees are hard to find, no matter where they used to work. When looking at former employees, it makes more sense to check them out rather than screen them out.
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