NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) - Changing attitudes in corporate America and a talent shortage are boding well for laid off employees as companies are rehiring their former staff, a study released Wednesday showed.

Thirteen percent of employees let go in a downsizing -- or about one out of 10 workers surveyed -- were later rehired by the same employer last year, according to a survey conducted by Right Management, a unit of employment firm Manpower.

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With a shortage of talent, especially at the managerial and executive levels, more companies are rethinking their attitude toward former employees, the survey found.

"Employers view rehiring former employees as less risky in terms of making a bad hire. A former employee let go for non-performance reasons is a known quantity who has already proven to be a good cultural fit with the organization," Eileen Javers of Right Management said in a statement.

The survey found that 54 percent of employers are at least occasionally rehiring former employees who were displaced by earlier cutbacks. However, some firms are still reluctant to take back old workers. Forty-six percent of organizations surveyed said they rarely hire back former staff.

The findings of the survey also show that entrepreneurship remains an attractive option for many who have been cast off. Last year, 21 percent of laid off employees started new businesses, about the same percentage as in 2004.

The consulting firm surveyed more than 14,000 displaced employees from more than 4,900 organizations in North America.

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