[Stonehenge]

Got a message this afternoon - a former employee is wondering if we need anymore help for the remainder of the season.

He was potentially going to work for me this year, but sought out and got an offer from another company that I thought was beyond his value, so I balked.

So either he was fired or quit.

He was very dependable when working for me; not an all-star, but pretty decent. Never gave any lip, did what he was told.

Would you take him back?

[Paul]

At his old wages? Or what he wanted this spring?

[jwholden]

He needs me, he can not live without me, I can get away with whatever I want and make the new guys do all the work. I have been doing this longer.

Tough call. This is your situation but my gut tells me that it will turn your stomach more than once if you take him back.

Final question,

What happens when he finds another chump to give him more money?

[scl]

When you work for someone, you're always looking for something better. Gotta keep the options open. You've said yourself, along with almost everyone else, that good help is tough to come by. I'm reminded of when I was a strapping young man, many moons ago, and I gave my boss my two weeks to go work for a local builder. Three days later this guy breaks both bones in his ankle and I had to crawl back and ask for my old job. I got it and was very appreciative. Seems like it was for a whole $2.60 an hour LOL. As long as you didn't cut him loose or something else I'd say give it a shot.

[Stonehenge]

I didn't fire him - he chose to go elsewhere. Actually, when the season ended he intended to become a machinist, so the fact that he even called in Spring 2003 for a possible job was a surprise.

The thing I want to make sure of is that he is in fact unemployed, and not just trying to use me to leverage himself higher pay at the other place. Nothing ticks me off more than that.

[diginahole]

I'd tell him about the changes that have been made at Stonehenge BPL this season and let him know how you would love for him to step things up himself. There is opportunity to grow at Stonehenge and with this growth comes better wages. You have witnessed first hand 2 very promising qualites from this guy. First, and I consider this huge, is dependablity. We need guys who show up everyday and on time. We need to know that when they are given a task it will get done. Secondly he sounds coachable. We want guys who don't already own the world. We have tried and true systems and procedures to accomplish our daily tasks. He must learn these procedures and follow them. It makes our job as leaders that much easier if there are willing followers.

To me it sounds like your guy didn't burn any bridges when he left or you wouldn't even be considering him again. I say if you can use him bring him back on and let him know that he is expected to step up to bat and swing with everthing he has got. The reward will be worth the effort.

[jwholden]

Jeff,

I was thinking about this on the way home from work tonight and was thinking back to my days of working an employee.

I had a winter meeting with my boss where the idea was he would make me an offer for the next year. Frankly, I was not 100% happy at the place but I was waiting for a great offer to give me the incentive to stay. It never appeared.

Anyway, I do remember that he spotted me as a guy who wanted his own business and he knew if I left that I was leaving to do just that.

He said that if things did not go the way I planned I was always welcome to come back and work for him. I was proud to hear that from my employer and have not had to take him up on the offer, though I am sure it is still good today. So this makes me remember what is was like to see things from the other side of the fence.

I still say trust your gut. If you are putting the post here then obviously you are having second thoughts...

[dan deutekom]

Well I guess I have to disagree with the majority. Once they are gone, whatever the reason, they are gone. They left for a reason, and people don't really change. Take him back and you set yourself up as a revolving door. I don't look at him as being dependable for you. Next better offer real or perceived and he will be gone. You have to move on to move forward.

[agla]

As business owners you all have entreprenuerial spirit. You try to improve your lot in life by assessing and adapting. From your perspective you need to use the tools at hand that best get the job done. Some of these tools are people. Like other tools they don't all last forever, but that does not mean that you should not use them. Unlike other tools, people have an effect on the other people around them. If it is a negative effect on other people that is obviously not good.

Some employees have the same type of entreprenuerial spirit that you have. They use that to drive them to make themselves more valuable as an employee, so that they can earn better wages. Some are not that type, or just trade time for money. Those that have that spirit will always try to do the best for their current employer, but will put their own best long term interest first. While they are with you, you get 100% out of them. But, if they reach a dead end or see greater opportunity to improve their lot in life they will go for it. Simply put, the same thing that drives these employees to jump ship is the same thing that drives them to give you 100%.

If the guy is of that type and does not sour the rest of the troops, let him help your business while he is there.

I find it funny when business owners equate loyalty as the employees acceptance of a lot in life that only allows them to grow as the company sees fit. That is totally contradictory to how the owner views his own life. You have to ask yourself how much an employee is motivated to achive for your company if they are unmotivated to achive for themselves. Would you have a salesperson negotiate a sale for you, if they knuckled under to accept low pay from you?

Understand that ambitious people do not tolerate stagnation. That does not mean that you should not hire them. Hire them and take what they will give you while they are willing to give it. Maybe you can keep them growing within your company and hold on to them for a long time.

I think it is narrow to adopt a blind rule that once they are gone they can't come back. It only serves a big ego and not the best interest of your business. It may happen that no one that worked for you should come back, but if it is the right person take him.

Let's see a partial resume ...

In the old days...
There was my first job as an evening janitor... worked there twice.

The Mobil station ... twice,

One nursery ... twice.

Concrete form company ... several times.

Hide & fur company ... twice.

In recent times,...
A very well respected landscape company... twice

A very well respected land planning company ... three times and there right now.

Did any of these people bank on me remaining forever? I hope not. They know that I give 100% while I am there. They know that with each move I expanded my knowledge, skills, and abilities and brought that back with me.

Many landscapers complain that they train their competition. If you hire back good people that you trained with added experience and understanding by having worked for someone else, that in itself is not a bad thing. Let the guy that just lost him do the complaining.

[Lanelle]

Great post agla! I agree that you need to think of this guy as a temporary asset from an emotional point of view. If and when he can see the value of staying with you, then you might think in terms of how he can become an integral part of your growth. Basically I agree that in this business, people do move around but that gives a broader perspective of how to get things done and what not to do. The guy may have learned some things that will be valuable to you.

[scl]

I concur with AGLA. I believe that motivated people are always looking to better their situation. Hell, aren't we all? Anyways, I got that he wasn't fired, just sying that since he wasn't I'd go for it. Good luck

[Nebraska]

Excellent post Alga!

[dan deutekom]

That was an excellent post Alga. And there are occasions that I would hire someone a second time but it has been my experience that usually when a person leaves a company for a better job and then comes back to the same job they left, no good ever comes from it. Now if they left as a labourer and then after a few years they came back to be a foreman for you because they have gained experience at other jobs then I say that would be fine.
But to leave as a labourer only to come back as a labourer there just isn't any forward motion in my mind.

[BRL]

Sorry to repeat, but that really was a great post AGLA. I say go for it as well, but make sure your terms are very clear, and like Diginahole wrote, let him know your operation isn't exactly as when he last participated.

[jwholden]

Jeff,

What was your decision on this matter?