I (26F) worked for a company during covid until I took what I thought was a good opportunity and left. During my first week at the new job, I called my previous employer and asked for my job back. I was given the runaround until eventually being told “We're gonna go another direction” which I understood based on how I left.
Fast forward a few months, I got a phenomenal new job with better pay, hours and more time off. My previous company called me back, not about my old job but because they needed someone to do some consulting work. I told them I would be interested but that they would need to match my current pay which is about $9 extra an hour than I was being paid previously and match my hours or compensate accordingly for the difference. I stressed that I'm not in need of a job, but I did like the company and the direction they were going but that I have a really good deal going on currently and would need that matched. The recruiter said “Okay I'll call you back on Tuesday to let you know what everyone is thinking” that was about a month ago.
I can only assume I was ghosted because they wanted me to come back and do even more than I did for them previously but at my previous salary, hours and all of that nonsense. This market is insane, if you're going to come and try to recruit me, you should expect to match or compensate accordingly for my current situation right?