Don’t Slam the Door on Prospective Employees Who Ghost You不要拒绝曾放你鸽子的准员工

吉恩·马克斯　陈栋

Not showing up after accepting an offer is unacceptable， but if you have a chance to hire someone again don’t shut them out—they may have beneficial skills.被錄用却又爽约确实让人无法接受，但如果有机会重新聘用那个人，不要把他们拒之门外——他们可能仍有一技之长。

A disturbing and growing behavior in this country is affecting countless small and large businesses： prospective1 employees are turning into ghosts.

“Ghosting”2 happens when a prospective employee goes through all the steps of your company’s hiring process， accepts the job that you have offered… and then doesn’t show up to work because—in most cases—a better offer came along.

What kind of behavior is this？ Apparently， a very popular one. A new survey of 2，800 workers from across nearly 30 US cities conducted by job search firm Robert Half found 28% of workers had backed out of offers at the last minute after initially saying yes.

The reasons？ Almost half （44%） said it was because they “received a better offer from another company.” Others received counter-offers from their current employers or heard things about the new company that they “didn’t actually like.”

As you can imagine， the impact of these actions is disruptive， particularly to a smaller company. By the time an offer is made and accepted it’s likely that the competing candidates were told of the decision and moved on. Managers may feel let down3. Plans probably need to be changed. Paperwork has to be thrown out.

“Having cold feet4 is understandable; ghosting an employer is unacceptable，” said Paul McDonald， senior executive director for Robert Half. “Even though it may seem easier to avoid an awkward situation， transparency5 is always the best policy during a job search. If you have a change of heart6 after accepting a position， be honest with the hiring manager.”

I agree that this type of behavior is unacceptable， and if it happens to you， you have every right to7 be furious. “Frankly， it’s like a punch in the stomach，” one of my clients who went through the experience told me. “I would never hire that person again.”

But is that the right response？ I’m not so sure.

There’s no doubt that some employees today are a little too confident about their job security. You can’t blame them—the economy is growing and our unemployment rate is the lowest it has been in 50 years. The memories of the 2009 recession8 have faded. Jobs are plentiful and many employers are desperate to find good workers. But here’s the thing： it’s not going to last. The economy will eventually turn south9 and people—many people—are ultimately going to lose their jobs. This always happens. And the employees who ghosted are going to find themselves avoiding some prospective employers because of their behavior.

So what would you do if a qualified applicant who once ghosted you suddenly shows back up looking for work？ Some employers would slam the door right in his face10. But not me. Why？

Just ask any experienced business owner. They will tell you that this kind of stuff happens all the time and in many different areas of their business. Customers say they will pay and they don’t. Suppliers are late on a promised delivery. Partners don’t step up to the plate11 like they said they would. Current employees don’t always do what they said they would do. Now， it’s prospective employees who agree to an offer and then back off. You learn that people are going to do what’s in their best interest and you should do what’s in yours.

It may come as a shock when a prospective employee ghosts you before even starting. Let’s hope they do it in a way that’s professional and transparent. But if you have a chance to hire that person again， then my advice to other business owners is to take the high road12 and keep the door open. If that person brings a level of skills to your organization that could potentially put more money in your pocket， keep your emotions out of it and profit.

有种令人恼火的行为在这个国家越来越多，那就是准员工放企业鸽子。它正影响着无数小型和大型企业。

“放鸽子”就是一个准员工走完了公司所有的招聘流程，接受了工作要约……但最后却未来报到。大多数情况下这是因为出现了更好的工作要约。

这是怎样一种行为？显然，它非常流行。罗伯特哈夫猎头公司对来自美国近30个城市的2800名员工进行了一项新的调查。调查显示28%的员工都曾有过一开始接受了工作要约，但在最后一秒临阵变卦的经历。

原因？近一半（44%）的人表示因为他们“从另一家公司拿到了更好的工作要约”。其他人有的从现任雇主那儿得到了反要约，有的则听说了一些准下家的事儿，对此他们“不是很喜欢”。

可以想象，这种行为带来的影响是破坏性的，尤其是对较小型的企业而言。当一个工作要约发出并被接受时，很可能其他的竞争者也已被告知这一结果并寻找新的机会了。经理们可能觉得被辜负，计划或需要重新调整，之前的文书工作也付诸东流。

“临阵打退堂鼓可以理解，但放雇主鸽子让人无法接受。”罗伯特哈夫高级执行董事保罗·麦克唐纳说道，“尽管避免尴尬场面看起来更容易些，但在找工作时保持信息透明永远是最好的选择。如果接受一个职位后改变了主意，请坦诚地告诉招聘经理。”

我同意这是种让人无法接受的行为。如果这事发生在你身上，你完全有权利生气。“坦白讲，这就像肚子被狠狠捅了一拳，”我的一个客户在经历了这样的糟心事后跟我说，“我绝不会再把这个人招进来。”

但这是正确的应对方式吗？我对此保留意见。

毫无疑问，现在有些员工对自己的工作保障过于自信。这也不能怪他们——经济在不断增长，失业率正处于50年来最低水平。2009年经济衰退已成为过去，工作机会数不胜数，很多雇主都迫切想要招到优秀员工。但要知道，风水总是轮流转，经济总会下行，人们——很多人——最终会失去工作。这样的事总会发生。而这些放鸽子的员工将会发现自己的行为会使他们错失一些潜在的雇主。

所以，当一个曾经放你鸽子的合格应聘者突然又现身寻求工作时，你会怎么做？有些雇主会直接把他拒之门外，但我不会。为什么？

随便问一位资历深厚的企业主，他们都会告诉你类似的事儿在他们公司很多不同工作中总会碰到。客户说了会付钱但并没有;承诺的交货期已到但供应商却食言了;合伙人并没有像承诺的那样开始行动;在职员工并非总是说到做到。现在不过是一个准雇员本来接受了工作机会却又反悔罢了。要知道人们总会选择让自己利益最大化，你也应该如此。

一个准员工还没入职就放你鸽子，这或许是晴天霹雳。希望他们能以一种专业透明的方式来处理这件事吧！但如果有机会可以重新把那个人纳入麾下，我对其他企业主的建议是：保持高姿态并敞开机会的大门。如果那个人能为你的组织带来一定的技能，从而可能让你赚更多的钱，那么不要被情绪左右，赚钱才是王道。

（译者为“《英语世界》杯”翻译大赛获奖选手）

1 prospective未来的，预期的。  2 ghost形容没有任何解释突然失去消息、联系。

3 let down令……失望，辜負。  4 have cold feet〈习语〉临阵畏惧，打退堂鼓。        5 transparency透明，透明度。  6 change of heart改变主意。  7 have every right to完全有权利做某事。

8 recession经济衰退，不景气。  9 turn south形势恶化（或衰退、变坏等）。  10 slam the door in one’s face〈习语〉（带有敌意、针对性的）拒绝，不给某人机会。

11 step up to the plate〈习语〉指在棒球比赛中开始击球，引申为开始做某事。  12 take the high road〈习语〉保持高姿态。