From the perspective of someone who hires on occasion, I'd really not be tempted to re-hire someone wanting their old job back they only left 4 weeks ago, even if they left on a positive note. It just wouldn't feel right, and I wouldn't want the negative atmosphere with any of my colleagues. I'd suggest your wife figure things out and find a new job. Not to mention the hastle it actualy causes when someone wants to leave/advertising and rehiring admin etc.
Left old job, want it back...
- Thread starter Transform_IT
- Start date
Associate
Having been brought back to a place I previously worked at in the past it's important to remember that the dynamics will likely not be the same as when she left - that chapter is closed.
Sure she can start a new chapter with the same place but at the end of the day it's likely gonna be different. There is a reason she left in the first place and its a big risk to go back with no leverage.
Sure she can start a new chapter with the same place but at the end of the day it's likely gonna be different. There is a reason she left in the first place and its a big risk to go back with no leverage.
As others have said context is everything. I actually returned to my former employer less than 3 months after leaving, but this was to take a up a different role in a different area of the business that was not impacted by my original reason for wishing to move on. It's been a complete success for both me and my employer and I am still there 4.5 years later.
Personally I can't see returning to the same post working out the same way.
Personally I can't see returning to the same post working out the same way.
Associate
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- 8 Jul 2005
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What was the reason for leaving the first job? Are those reasons still valid?
Doesn't sound like the old place is all that gutted to see her leave tbh... telling her she has to apply for the job when they're already well aware of how competent/useful she was when fulfilling that role isn't a great sign.
Have certainly seen people come back to an old workplace, though not after 4 weeks... shortest was more like just under a year - guy was going to go for a career change into IT security, landed a job at a well-known firm, turned out it was BS, mostly outsourcing the interesting stuff to smaller subcontracted firms, lots of quite mundane project work, racking up billable hours as a consultant for [brand name firm] when really just being some coordinator type.... came back to doing more interesting project related stuff for us.
Have certainly seen people come back to an old workplace, though not after 4 weeks... shortest was more like just under a year - guy was going to go for a career change into IT security, landed a job at a well-known firm, turned out it was BS, mostly outsourcing the interesting stuff to smaller subcontracted firms, lots of quite mundane project work, racking up billable hours as a consultant for [brand name firm] when really just being some coordinator type.... came back to doing more interesting project related stuff for us.
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Soldato
A member of staff returns and this is the problem you had? No wonder she left.
It's a bit #awks either way though right, leaving gifts typically bought from a whipround so you can't break it into a dozen pieces to hand back and people would probably feel odd accepting stuff back if offered it, in that situation I imagine i'd just suggest they keep the gifts but don't get anything next time they leave 
We once had someone who was a perm, left, came back as a contractor, left (with gifts), came back again, left (no gifts this time). Albeit significant gaps between coming back.
We once had someone who was a perm, left, came back as a contractor, left (with gifts), came back again, left (no gifts this time). Albeit significant gaps between coming back.
Yeah bit of a tricky situation in that regard.
3-4 bosses back they left, then came back a few weeks later (then left again a few months later) there was a lot of resentment about the leaving gifts from quite a few staff - personally I was just like meh that is life. Needless to say 2nd time they didn't get much leaving gift wise.
3-4 bosses back they left, then came back a few weeks later (then left again a few months later) there was a lot of resentment about the leaving gifts from quite a few staff - personally I was just like meh that is life. Needless to say 2nd time they didn't get much leaving gift wise.
Caporegime
No, she left of her own free will, and she should be prepared to take a paycut if she does indeed get the job back.
From the companies point of view, they will not have as much confidence in her loyalty as she was quick to abandon them when she thought the grass was greener.
From the companies point of view, they will not have as much confidence in her loyalty as she was quick to abandon them when she thought the grass was greener.
Getting bitter about leaving gifts seems a bit ridiculous tbh...
At some places I've worked they don't bother with gifts aside from for say senior managers, you typically get a big card passed around and people stick some cash in the envelope (if everyone sticks in a fiver or a tenner and you're on a floor with over 100 people then it's quite a nice wad of cash!). For my most recent past employer, I took the cash and stuck it behind the bar at my leaving do so I guess the more social ex-colleagues got it all back and more in free drinks - the people with kids or less social types missed out.
It is/was expected in some workplaces to open a tab at the bar for your leaving do anyway so an act of putting the cash towards it is kind of performative anyway, you were going to be paying for those drinks regardless. Smart move is to start off in a 'spoons pub then stop the tab and head to a club early.
At some places I've worked they don't bother with gifts aside from for say senior managers, you typically get a big card passed around and people stick some cash in the envelope (if everyone sticks in a fiver or a tenner and you're on a floor with over 100 people then it's quite a nice wad of cash!). For my most recent past employer, I took the cash and stuck it behind the bar at my leaving do so I guess the more social ex-colleagues got it all back and more in free drinks - the people with kids or less social types missed out.
It is/was expected in some workplaces to open a tab at the bar for your leaving do anyway so an act of putting the cash towards it is kind of performative anyway, you were going to be paying for those drinks regardless. Smart move is to start off in a 'spoons pub then stop the tab and head to a club early.
Soldato
I would echo Kenai's comment that they obviously (best case scenario) have reservations of taking her back or else they wouldn't make her re-apply. Of course it only takes one petulant/jobsworth type in the hiring group to either push this agenda in the interests of "fairness" or because she's put their nose out of joint.
I also echo Kenai's second point - there is little point taking an leaving employee back unless the reason for leaving can be addressed unless they are desperate for someone to plug the gap in the interim.
I have however seen people re-enter a business. One was a close friend at the time who took another job for higher pay, but the position was cheekily predicated on the new employer winning a contract - which it didn't and thus the employment offer was revoked. My friend had to awkwardly ask for their job back and did get it back without interviewing for it. They stayed in the role for a period of years. I don't know if their remuneration was changed, but I know my friend was very competent, conscientious and well thought of. I believe their progression track was reviewed however. So it is possible if the people involved are pragmatic and not petty. The company was quite laid back and chilled in culture and people did not hold grudges about it. I would however say the odds generally are stacked against you in the same scenario.
I also echo Kenai's second point - there is little point taking an leaving employee back unless the reason for leaving can be addressed unless they are desperate for someone to plug the gap in the interim.
I have however seen people re-enter a business. One was a close friend at the time who took another job for higher pay, but the position was cheekily predicated on the new employer winning a contract - which it didn't and thus the employment offer was revoked. My friend had to awkwardly ask for their job back and did get it back without interviewing for it. They stayed in the role for a period of years. I don't know if their remuneration was changed, but I know my friend was very competent, conscientious and well thought of. I believe their progression track was reviewed however. So it is possible if the people involved are pragmatic and not petty. The company was quite laid back and chilled in culture and people did not hold grudges about it. I would however say the odds generally are stacked against you in the same scenario.
Off topic a bit, but surely you just wouldn't put a 4 week stint on your CV?
It could come up on a reference I imagine should they confirm how long she had been at the company?
Well it would be longer than 4 weeks, it's 4 weeks already sunk at the time of writing, she'd then have to agree terms to rejoin the old company, and potentially serve a notice period. So it would be a couple of months in total.
Additionally, even if you didn't put the X week stint at company B on the CV, you couldn't claim to have been working for company A during that period. You'd have to leave a gap which would still look odd and need explaining.
Sure, you could attempt to blag it if you are of unscrupulous mind, but it might come up in a reference check, and if you tried to claim you'd been there for years on things like a finance application, that would be fraud.
Additionally, even if you didn't put the X week stint at company B on the CV, you couldn't claim to have been working for company A during that period. You'd have to leave a gap which would still look odd and need explaining.
Sure, you could attempt to blag it if you are of unscrupulous mind, but it might come up in a reference check, and if you tried to claim you'd been there for years on things like a finance application, that would be fraud.
But if you worked in a place say for say 5 years even if it is over 2 stints, would it be wrong to say you worked for x company for 5 years? Technically its true?
After I graduated I worked in a job for about 2.5 years, I then left and came back after about 7-8 months when the IT manager called me back to join them again as a senior analyst. I went back and stayed for about 6-7 months before leaving again (didn't get what I was promised before I joined). In most places I would still say I worked there for over 3 years, no one ever questions it. In my CV I normally put the dates for the 2 periods.
I never had any issues with reference checks etc. Its only a problem if you make dates up, I don't think short stints do not really matter if its a one off and you can explain it if it is ever brought up at interviews.
It all comes down to why she left the old job. If it was something that made her actively seek out alternative employment then those issues will still remain and fester and I'd wager she'll be as frustrated as she was before within a year and liekly will have moved on again in that time.
Yes it would still be valid to say you worked there for 5 years, that's the way you would try to phrase it in conversation if one of the stints was very short. But on the CV you have to put it as separate dates and in a reference they would likely confirm the dates.
As for your situation, were you a senior analyst when you left the first time? I'd have no concerns about a CV where someone left and then came back for a different role, which isn't the case here.
I joined as a Junior Analyst after I left University, I did get a couple of pay rise whilst I was there but they never changed my title. I returned on on the promise they were going to offer me a significant pay rise as well as the Senior Analyst role. The mistake I made was that I left what I was doing at the time before getting everything on paper... when I went for a chat with the CEO on the first day back he tried to get me to come back on where I left, at that point I knew I made huge mistake
I managed to negotiate a payrise with a verbal promise that he will get the paper work sorted and full pay promised in a few weeks. Obviously that few weeks never came so I left after getting a better job elsewhere.Yeah so this is a different situation - left company A as Junior Analyst, went to company for 7-8 months, then came back to company A into a Senior Analyst role. This seems logical to someone reviewing your CV because they can see they you came back due to getting a better opportunity (on paper at least). The OP's wife is in a different situation, this is talking about coming back to company A with the same role as she had originally, which alludes to rather than her making progression in her career, having some sort of issue in the new role that meant she was prepared to go back to her old role at the same level.