Staff Matters

In fact, a surprisingly high number of employees return to their previous employer. Sometimes, it could be that they had a career break or obtained further skills, qualifications and experience. It is also common for employees to return to a practice with a following of clients or useful contacts, with obvious benefits for the employer. So, what are the reasons behind this recent phenomenon, and what are the risks for employers?

Changing work patterns

Part of the reason may be historical and shows a change in the way people view work. Twenty to 30 years ago, a job was for life. When an employee left an employer, there was often the underlying assumption that the employee’s commitment to the organisation had gone. The concern was that even if the employer did have the employee back at some point in the future, he or she would not stay for long, or be as efficient as he or she might have been previously, because the employee no longer had the same degree of loyalty to the firm.

Nowadays, employees move jobs more frequently and, even in the professions, the concept of a job for life has been eroded. The demographic shift in the age of the population and a reduced skills base in certain areas of recruitment have also led to employers realistically considering recruiting employees “second time round”.

Skills shortage

Reconsidering ex-employees can be useful, especially if you work in a specialised environment where there is a shortage of skilled staff. It can also help out the small employer who has no time to train new staff; they have to hit the ground running from day one.

There are, however, some pitfalls if you are considering approaching former employees to work for you again.

As with all recruitment, it is important to follow a proper process with a job description, person specification and interview selection process to avoid the risk of a discrimination claim.

A proper process is all the more important if you are thinking about inviting your former employees to work for you again.

While there are various types of discrimination now – sex, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation, disability and age – the most commonly pleaded are breaches of the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 and the Race Relations Act 1976.

If you appoint someone into a fairly general position for which others within the organisation were expected to be able to apply, but were denied the opportunity, because there was not an open practice of interview and appointment, there is the potential for a discrimination claim. (Or, in Northern Ireland, a claim for a breach of the Fair Employment Act). Of course, the situation might be different if you head-hunted someone for a highly specialised role; perhaps, a situation where there were only one or two practitioners in a particular field of expertise. It is more difficult in that case to see how a discrimination claim could be made, because the others waiting in the wings for that opportunity for promotion may simply not have the specialised skills and knowledge.

Best practice

In general, however, for more “run of the mill” posts, you need to follow the best practice of a formal recruitment procedure. If you find yourself with a skills shortage and wish to approach staff who have previously worked for you, tell them about the vacancy and invite them to apply. That way, you get a proper chance to assess their skills and abilities to do the job, rather than relying on past memories, and the opportunity to select the best candidate for the job.

This is often referred to as the “merit principle”. Not only is it a good move for your business, it is also a good way to avoid allegations of discrimination and, in the unfortunate incidence of any claims being made, can go towards your defence.

These days, in some employment sectors, up to 50 per cent of employees return to work for an old employer at some point, which just goes to show that re-employment is often a successful recruitment policy.