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Hired, With Hard Feelings

Bill Varie/CORBIS

Hired, With Hard Feelings

Advice to companies tempted to play hard ball with job applicants as unemployment rates rise: Think again. Employees who say they were mistreated during hiring feel less committed—for years. Researchers at Vanderbilt University’s Owen Graduate School of Management surveyed roughly 100 MBA graduates about how they were hired by their employers. Those who felt they had been treated unfairly were twice as likely to be looking for opportunities outside their company, says Vanderbilt management professor Ray Friedman, “even after five years.” On his list of common “interactional injustices” during hiring are slow responses from employers, offers that are withdrawn if not accepted immediately, and “a company whose attitude is, ‘You need us.’” The lesson for businesses positioning themselves to succeed in the economic recovery: “Don’t abuse the momentary power you have as an employer. It’ll come back to bite you.”