Accept a job offer then decline

[Texas Proud]

Interesting counterpoint....

We just hired a few people in our group... then management decided to reorg the managers and ours was moved somewhere else... I have heard one of the guy that got hired is really pissed off... his job is changing from what he thought it would be... who knows what it will become as they just told us our new manager and she has not told us anything...

[Celany]

I say just go for it too, but in a respectful way. like other people said, it's 'just business'.

as for burning bridges, that's not necessarily true, if you do it in a respectful manner. I don't know what your industry is like, but in 3-5 years, the turnover in my industry is very high. new HR people may toss the old applications. new computer systems start & someone forgets to add all the old hiring info. If you went back to the old job & applied in a few years, they may have no memory of you whatsoever.

[ambition187]

i know for first jobs, colleges (if you went) get *very* mad if you renege on a job offer for the obvious reason: your school will get a rep for bad candidates, which will mean less recruiting, which means less jobs for the graduates, which means less money for alumni, which means less $ for school :P

for me, i am somewhat nervous about the job i accepted. Something seemed a little bit odd, and also strange that they gave me my own office (im 23!). however, i guess i can't complain about an error in my favor.

however, I have given up the job search since I accepted. I will try it and see how it goes .


it looks like your situation is different though as you have been in the industry for a while.

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ambition187 i know for first jobs, colleges (if you went) get *very* mad if you renege on a job offer for the obvious reason: your school will get a rep for bad candidates, which will mean less recruiting, which means less jobs for the graduates, which means less money for alumni, which means less $ for school :P

Yeah, I would've expected that the college would have our best interests at heart.

So would this mean that they'd never pester you again about alumni contributions?

[sagenx]

Hi, I own a recruitment company. My advice is that is okay to decline an offer that you have already accepted provided that you immediately get in contact with the person that hired you and let them know. No company should wish to hire someone who is not looking forward to starting there. If you went through an agency and they try to tell you it is not ethical, then never use that company again. They are only in it for the money. A company that wants to have a good relationship with you over the long term and understands that it is a major decision in your life, will be disappointed but will convey the right message to their client and move on. Also send a letter to the hiring manager, apologizing for the inconvenience caused. You never know, you may want to go back there in a few years.
Hope this helps

[clifp]

The other company obviously knew that you were looking for a new job. Presumably they put a bit of pressure on you to accept sooner rather than later. During that time you found an even better job, stuff happens. The worse that will happen to the other company is they have to start looking again, the best is they have a second candidate that they liked but not as well you.

The apology letter is a good idea. (Advice my mom always gave, but seldom followed )

[georgia8]

I was glad to read that one person declined a job the day before she was supposed to start because I had to do this also. However, the response I received was not the same. They got REALLY mad at me and were not supportive at all. The situation was I was moving across country from GA to CA. I was excited about the job, but was in the middle of renovating my condo to rent it out because I could not sell without losing money. They were only giving me $3000 relocation fees but wouldn't give me more time, so I was trying really hard to make it all work. Then, the week before I was supposed to go, the economy nose-dived, my renovators had to come back making me have to leave my cats alone with them for 2 weeks. I still feel guilty, even though I was disappointed at their reaction as well. I feel like if I was moving across country at partially my own expense, they should have been a little more supportive. What do you think.

[freebird5825]

Quote:

Originally Posted by confused123 I feel guilty about leaving the current employer. In addition, I feel so unethical to have accepted a job offer but considering another offer. I know it's unacceptable to accept an offer and then decline it in favor of another one. Burning the bridge of an employer or a certain manager may have serious consequences. That is, you will never be hired by that company or that manager. Have anyone faced this situation before? What did you do?

Almost...
in my early years, i was desperately looking for something entry-level in my field. however, it was the very early 80s and i took whatever i could get so i could eat. i accepted a non technical job, reported, and worked for 2 or 3 weeks. lo and behold, a job in my field came through. i was given a written offer by mail and signed it and delivered it in person on my lunch hour. 2nd company wanted me right away, but i said i should give at least 2 weeks notice. i went right to my current supervisor with offer letter in hand and gave my 2 week notice. the company HR person was really cool and said 1 week notice would be ok if i wanted to start the new job earlier. no, i stuck it out for 2 weeks until they could replace me. the 2nd company told me later that my handling of leaving the former job really impressed them.
it's all in the timing. sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. such is life.

[denmar68]

In response to Georgia8, we just went through a similar problem in November. My bf and I were both unemployed and living in TX. He received a very lucrative job offer in Salt Lake City, 1400 miles away. The only problem was trying to find housing (to accommodate our very large dog) and scraping up enough funds to move us there. They offered him the job with $2K relocation expenses on Monday (not in writing, mind you) and when he asked them to give him until Wednesday to decide, they said OK, but then when he told them he needed til Friday to find a house, they withdrew the offer on Wednesday!!! As luck would have it, we did find a rental home and I had 4 interviews lined up. So asking some companies for time can be a gamble. This software company wouldn't give us FIVE days.

We've since moved back to my old home in Florida, and now I'M in a pickle. I received one job offer and I'm waiting for the offer letter in the mail, but there's another job that I'm in the process of interviewing for. I want to weigh out my options before I accept either job, but the timing might be a little sticky...

[Meadbh]

I'm hiring at the moment. One of our top candidates will not be available for 3 weeks after the job is open. Having someone commit to a new job and then disappearing for a vacation makes me worry about second thoughts. If I wait too long for a decision, I risk losing another very attractive candidate to another opportunity. Sometimes you just have to give people a mutually acceptable deadline and hope for the best.

[Zoocat]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spanky It's true that we need to do what's best for us. However, it's still wrong (morally) to rescind. A company can also rescind an offer under certain circumstances (mostly financial). However, we are dealing with a person (not a company) who has trust in you. Thus, it is very, very difficult not to feel bad since you are letting that person down.

You're right that it's an ethical decision but I believe you are confusing personal and business relationships. An employer may be counting on you but in that relationship your loyalty has to be to yourself and your family because your financial survival depends upon making the best decision, just as your employer's loyalty is to the company's survival in her decision to hire or lay off employees.

In this definition of the relationship, it is not immoral to rescind your acceptance of the job offer. It is moral to act in your own and your family's best interest, especially in the current economy.

[tryan]

The thread reminds of a megacorp story ... we hired a young kid just out of the navy. He was living in FL and agreed to move to MA at megacorps expense. Problem was the GF (with whom he had a child) was not keen on moving to the northeast ("it's too COLD up there!"). Takes a house hunting trip. Finds an apartment. Makes all necessary deposits and he packs up the clan and moves in over the weekend. Supposed to start working on Monday.

GF didn't last 2 days! She packs up the kid and takes a flight "home" to mommy and daddy. He's sitting in traffic triing to get to orientation at megacorp. Says "F-this" phones in his resignation before working a DAY and drives to FL! Much to his surprize, his expense reports for all moving costs, house hunting, hotel ... were denied by megacorp.

[youbet]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tryan ! Much to his surprize, his expense reports for all moving costs, house hunting, hotel ... were denied by megacorp.

And appropriately so....... To avoid being stuck for expenses for last minute mind changers such as the case you describe, the MegaCorp I toiled for only gave cash advances for moving expenses on rare occasions and they had to be approved at a painfully high level. The general rule was the applicant covered the expenses and turned in expense reports during his/her first week on the job.

[tryan]

Mega corp has a written contract with the employee being relocated ... quit within a year and all moving expences are due back to megacorp. After a year, you're a freebird.

[thriver1000]

I was offered more money to stay. They were concerned about hiring someone who knew they were second choice. I took the other job. It may turn out positive for you!

[REWahoo]

This thread has some long legs...

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tryan After a year, you're a freebird.

Do I get a dh2b with that?

[bbbamI]

Quote:

Originally Posted by REWahoo This thread has some long legs...

<--------- Here are two more.

[REWahoo]

This thread is useless without a larger picture...

[bbbamI]

Quote:

Originally Posted by REWahoo This thread is useless without a larger picture...

...a picture of what?