I am exactly that kind of person and I'd be happy to explain why.
So what happens when you hire for a job? You go through a few interviews. You ask pertinent questions about their history, but most of all you're trying to find a cultural fit. You want to be happy with the employee and you want the employee to be happy working for you. You check his background and you introduce him to others in the company to get their impressions. Then, you make an offer and hopefully he's hired.
Employment is a lot like a marriage. Seriously. It's expected to be "permanent" and it's expected that there is loyalty in both parties.
Now let's look at this for a moment.
Let's say you're looking to date someone and the process goes something like this:
- A blind date set up by a mutual acquaintances
- 3 to 4 rather short dates
- The recommendations of his friends
- Introduce him to your friends and possibly even your parents.
Everything in your dating experience has gone well, so what next? Why, you propose marriage!
It's really not that far from the truth. Full-time employment is supposed to be permanent and there are procedures for ending the relationship. And when you do split up, you're going to have to explain it (if you look for another marriage) to your next blind date at some point why that marriage broke up. You can't simply say "It just didn't work out".
I prefer contracts, or at least Contract-to-Permanent because that gives both parties the opportunity to truly get to know each other without that long-term commitment. And you know what happens if it doesn't work out? All you need to say is "the contracted ended."
But (like a marriage) if you're married 2 or 3 times and you get fired, there must be something wrong with you. That's the assumption. Nobody ever assumes the obvious which is:
Less than a day of getting to know each other is no way to start a marriage or a permanent job.
So try to work with the guy and do yourself a favor. If he wants a fixed term contract, make it long-term, like a year. As a year approaches, offer him full-time employment. You may find that you don't really want him permanently after all. Or he may be more suited in another area. Either way, you both get what you want.
You want permanence, but get real. No job is permanent, whether you're the employer or the employee. You're just relying on the loyalty and goodwill of the other to keep it permanent.
Settle for the contract.