Reports have confirmed that as many as 7 overnight employees from the Walden Avenue Target were fired after they violated a company policy by buying Zhu Zhu pets, the cuddly robotic pet hamsters pegged the hottest toy of the holiday season, during working hours. The store manager fired the workers last week, as they had violated the policy which prohibited the purchase of "two-day ad items," which included Zhu Zhu Pets, during their work shift.

On Sunday evening, however, Target officials announced that they have revisited the decision and the workers are now back with the company, and the firings were a mere result of a "company policy that had been overzealously enforced".

"Target has carefully reviewed the situation and we have determined the team member terminations were the unintended consequences of a good policy rigidly applied. Therefore, Target intends to reinstate all seven of the team members, effective immediately", the company said.

The overnight workers had purchased Zhu Zhu Pets, priced at $8, after a shipment had arrived earlier this month. It has been shared that these robotic hamsters are in huge demand everywhere, but the lack of supply is leaving many eager buyers disappointed.

Target has now made it clear that it is going to stick to its policy, which is clearly mentioned in the employee handbook, to ensure that workers do not have an unfair advantage over customers.