New Hires at Bear Stearns Axed Before They Start

Hundreds of college grads who thought they had landed dream positions with Bear Stearns were canned before their first day on the job, the Wall Street Journal reports. As the giant bank began to implode, the students were at first assured their new jobs were safe—but then were sent packing to hunt for work along with 38,000 others recently let go by the financial industry.

"The worst part is that it’s a really hard market for us to look for other jobs,” said one Bear almost-employee. They have one consolation: bosses at Bear's new owner, JPMorgan Chase, have said they can keep their hefty signing bonuses—if they promise not to sue over the rescinded offers. (More Bear Stearns stories.)