Kansas City, Mo. ? Refunds are available for Kansas job seekers who claim Bernard Haldane Associates cheated them out of thousands of dollars with unrealized promises of getting an inside track on a “hidden job market.”

The New York-based career counseling firm agreed Friday to refund $300,000 to clients who said the company’s Overland Park and Wichita franchises deceived them.

Bernard Haldane’s national office and Reed Freeman Management Group Inc., which run the two Kansas franchises, also agreed to pay the state a combined $100,000 in penalties and fees.

Atty. Gen. Carla Stovall’s office received nearly 100 complaints from consumers and conducted a nearly two-year investigation that led to the consent agreement.

Company officials in May 1999 agreed to pay $80,000 to the Kansas attorney general to settle earlier complaints and legal costs.

Officials with Bernard Haldane said they consented to the settlement “in the interest of speedy resolution.”

The company said “any allegation of client dissatisfaction is of great concern to us.”

The consent agreement alleges that company representatives falsely claimed they could bypass business human resources and personnel departments, that their services were always tax-deductible, and that they had access to a “hidden job market.”

To get a refund, consumers’ complaints must be among those outlined in the consent agreement, said Mark Ohlemeier, spokesman for Stovall’s office. He said the deadline for filing complaints and making a refund requests is Oct. 28.