Boomerang Employees: is Rehiring Former Employees a Good Idea?

Some people will leave your business. That’s normal. But what if they want to come back? Is rehiring former employees a good idea? In this article, we’ll talk about boomerang employees and the benefits of rehiring former employees.

What are boomerang employees?

A boomerang employee can be defined as someone who quits his job at a company and returns to his former employer after some time. A boomerang employee can return to his old job or another position (usually a higher one).

What are the reasons behind a boomerang employee?

There are a large number of reasons that make someone want to come back to their old workplace. Some miss their former colleagues and the work environment; others just realized they made a mistake and that grass isn’t greener at their new job. Maybe they don’t appreciate their new company culture or miss their former manager, who chose not to micromanage and gave them more autonomy.

The pandemic forced many people and companies to make changes in the last two years. A significant number of employees started to explore other job opportunities, while others began actively looking for remote jobs while quiet quitting.

What is a good boomerang employee?

According to SHRM, the best boomerang employees are those who left the organization on good terms. The same source states that some people left an organization during the pandemic and returned. Other reasons for leaving their jobs might be personal, or they might have left to gain additional experience or explore other jobs and progress in their career.

Rehiring former employees who quit, in most cases, is a good thing. The boomerang employees return after gaining new skills and experience, which can provide more value for the company they’re rejoining.

Employees returning to work after quitting a company are becoming more common. According to LinkedIn, 4.5 percent of all firm recruits came from this source in 2021, up from 3.9 percent in 2019.
Not long ago, more than half of HR professionals said that their organizations had policies prohibiting the rehiring of former workers, even if they left on good terms. Boomerangs, on the other hand, offer various advantages.

Although no organization wants a valuable employee to quit, returning after some time may be immensely advantageous to both the company and the individual.
These returning employees are already aware of the organization’s subtleties, as well as the employer’s expectations and corporate culture.
Reaching out to people who are already familiar with your company can provide a competitive edge in a job market when talent competition is at an all-time high for several reasons.

What are the benefits of rehiring former employees?

Why Would You Rehire an Employee? We’ll have advantages and disadvantages when discussing rehiring former employees. Let’s share some details about the pro aspects of rehiring former employees:

They’ll maintain or increase their performance and productivity.
The overall performance of the boomerang employee is comparable to its initial performance at the company.

Boomerang employees bring unique skills and experiences that may substantially help a company. They may provide a fresh viewpoint and essential insights and also gain a renewed perspective on the industry itself. A boomerang employee’s vital insights may invigorate a team with the energy it needs to keep expanding.

You know each other.
Even if they left your business in order to pursue another opportunity, there’s still a connection. As we detailed in this article, connections are essential in the workplace.
As an employer, you know their capabilities and skills, and they, as employees, understand what will be expected of them. They know your business, your team, and the company culture. The onboarding will be fast, and they can start to bring value to your company from the first day on the job.

They can attract new talent.
Having a returning customer means your product is good. The same thing applies when thinking about boomerang employees. Employees don’t usually return to a workplace they consider bad. Their return states, ‘I came back because it’s better in this company.’ That is a huge deal when attracting other professionals to your business.

It’s good from a cost perspective.
Hiring new people can be a hassle and easily cost you a lot of money. Companies take a risk with every new hire. The costs of rehiring former employees are significantly lower than hiring a new person. Hiring someone new can cost you up to 4200$, and hiring the wrong person, from a cost perspective, is a huge minus for your company. According to CareerBuilder, you may spend up to 17000$ for selecting an employee who won’t stay or fit in your business.

On the other side, things are pretty sure with rehiring former employees. They chose to leave your firm, but they returned – this means they are willing to stay, at least for some time. And also, you will only need to spend a few resources on employee vetting.

What’s the risk of rehiring former employees?

The most significant risk in rehiring boomerang employees is they could depart again. Both the employee and the employer must be clear about what is different this time, and both must accept the growth and change of the other. To ensure the success of a boomerang employee, some extra planning is necessary. The company and the employee must be clear on what will be different this time. Before making a rehire, it is best to make explicit expectations about the salary, benefits, company culture, and any other changes since they left.

Returning employees may demotivate your staff. Boomerang employees usually return on better salaries or positions; these things can impact the employees that staid in your company and may affect their morale and their loyalty.

All things considered, I think that the advantages of rehiring former employees are huge, and that it is always a good call to give someone a second chance.