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by johnnywatt

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Can a previous employer give your past job review to a potentional new employer who calls them for a reference? I have more than a few people consistently telling me, "All they can do is say you worked there".
Just a question.

7 replies

by jamesrl

My current employers policy is to only confirm length of employment and job titles.

Other employers I have had have consented to lengthy reference calls and answered questions openly.

Even with policy some employers might be tempted to try and give signals....or discreetly go beyond policy.

James

by cactus pete

Most companies won't say anything - they could say the wrong thing too easily. So policy is that they only mention you worked there.

by johnnywatt

That's what most people have been saying. Thanks for the time to answer a non-tech silly question.

by amcol

It's a legal issue. Companies are only legally required to confirm the fact of employment, and the starting and ending dates.

No company would supply a performance review in response to a reference request. An individual manager...one who is intensely stupid, ignorant of the law, and with a personal axe against you to grind...might be persuaded to give up a review, but in that case I'd see a libel lawyer if I were you.

There are situations where prospective employers will ask you, the candidate, to supply your own past reviews. It's then up to you if you wish to comply. I'm assuming you've posted the question because you are the victim of a bad review. Were I you, I'd decline such a request without explanation, and if pressed I'd simply say the document is unavailable. You are running a small risk that the prospective employer will take a pass on your candidacy as a result, but there's no chance such an employer would hire you if you did supply your poor review.

by stress junkie

Career issue questions are just as important and relevant to this forum as tech issues. The forums might benefit by having more career issues discussed.

by deepsand

Given that our society has become so damned litagous, with clueless juries handing out enough bucks to fund a small island nation, companies are now not willing to provide any information, beyond that mandated by law, to a 3rd party, for fear that it will come back to haunt them.

by hockeyist

Ten years ago references were handed out willy nilly. Now all you get is "Yep. Worked here between this and that date, even if an outanding job was done. In the last ten years Australia has gone the way of the U.S. as far as litigation is concerned. We have lawyers advertising on radio all the time selling their "we'll get them for you and make you rich and them sorry" solution.
Risk mitigation is what it's all about. The policies I have read state very clearly to not give references (not even personal ones), just to indicate the period of employment.

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