Errgh...

So last week, I got this co-op job offer (not really an offer, just a "yes, please") from <company removed>. I worked for them last summer, and to be honest, I did not do my best work. It's not that I'd done a *bad* job, but in the end it wasn't up to their standards or mine. I just wasn't a good fit for the job. It happens, especially to us students. I regret it, but I like to think I've learned from my mistakes, and will do much better on my next job.

Eehhnyway, I was naturally quite surprised to hear this company wanted me back (different job with a different manager, but they all talk). I was a bit leery about going back to work there, but there was no guarantee of finding a better job later if I turned them down, so I accepted. Besides, with midterms fast approaching and term projects on the horizon, I was happy to get out of the job-hunting cycle as quickly as possible. I'd just finished two satisfying books and dropped a worthless, time-consuming class, so with this on top, I was feeling pretty damn good about my immediate future.

Turns out that the manager who wanted to hire me had jumped the gun just a bit. This morning, he finally got around to talking with my previous boss, after which he called up the co-op office and rescinded the job offer.

Now, I'm not bitching because I didn't get this job. I did a lousy job for them the last time around, and it's only natural that they wouldn't want to hire me again. I'm sure I'll find employment somewhere else (though it looks like I'll have to be more careful with my references).

What bugs me is that this guy initially told the co-op office that he wanted to hire me, before he'd even checked my references from within his own fucking company. And then, after he'd discovered that employing me was a bad risk (I can do very good work, but for some reason I just didn't pull it off for this company), he had me shot down and sent back to the employment line. Even if there never was an official offer, that's just plain wrong. It's not just a shameful tease, it's downright unprofessional.