Employment reference - Reason for leaving

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Handle9

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#1306601 17-May-2015 13:11

alasta:
Handle9:
alasta: Wow. I hope I never end up working for a company like that because it would seriously affect my chances of ever being able to find another job. It's tantamount to imprisoning their employees in their current workplace.

The company I work for has a similar policy. What they do not forbid is a current employee giving a personal reference, rather than one on behalf of the company.

But all references pretty much are personal, aren't they? Prospective employers seem to be interested in knowing the personal experiences that the referee had while working alongside you rather than any sort of official statement on behalf of the company. On those grounds I guess it would be difficult to legally prevent anyone from offering this type of reference if they're careful what they say.

No. A personal reference by me places the liability for the reference on me. If I lie or omit something material there is no come back on the company, I assume all liability for my reference.

If it is offered by me as a company manager then there is a liability on the company which poses a litigation risk. Big companies hate these kinds of risks.

Geektastic

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#1306788 17-May-2015 19:47

alasta:
Handle9:
alasta: Wow. I hope I never end up working for a company like that because it would seriously affect my chances of ever being able to find another job. It's tantamount to imprisoning their employees in their current workplace.

The company I work for has a similar policy. What they do not forbid is a current employee giving a personal reference, rather than one on behalf of the company.

But all references pretty much are personal, aren't they? Prospective employers seem to be interested in knowing the personal experiences that the referee had while working alongside you rather than any sort of official statement on behalf of the company. On those grounds I guess it would be difficult to legally prevent anyone from offering this type of reference if they're careful what they say.

You can always refuse and suggest that they make a formal approach to HR, which is the wisest course.

It can also get very iffy when they ask you how John Doe might perform in their new role, something about which you can do nothing but guess. Of what relevance could your opinion possibly be as to how someone might do a job about which you know next to nothing for a company you probably have no experience of?

stevenz

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#1307589 19-May-2015 07:16

Most multi-nationals and larger corporates seem to have the "no references" policy. I suspect due the fact that many of them have a culture of blame and they want to avoid responsibility, and/or the fact they can't bill the time involved in writing the reference to a client.

@KnightNZ

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