ajcjobs > BlogBreak > Archives > 2006 > December > 05
Tuesday, December 5, 2006
Are references valid anymore?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Does anyone do formal references these days? Call some individuals for references and on the advice of Human Resources, all you will get is a confirmation of employment dates and little more. Giving references or relying on references whether written, phone or verbal can be a questionable and dangerous proposition. Are references really reliable anyway?
What are the liabilities? Giving references could leave you open to suits for defamation of character, invasion of privacy, discrimination, fraud or misrepresentation. You could also be in a world of trouble if you give a glowing references for someone who has known ethical or issues of sexual misconduct. Just reading the article by Hornak in FindLaw will make you hesitate to ever give a reference again!
Outsourcing seems to have hit the reference check area as well. More firms are turning to a third party to check references and handle the liabilities associated with reference checks. Some employers are relying more on credit checks and criminal background checks than verbal or written references.
What about soliciting information from former co-workers/supervisors not listed on the resume/application? This too can be dangerous; can you rely on the person you are contacting “on the side” or “under-cover”? How do you know they won’t rush to tell the individual in question of your questions?
So how much can be gained by checking references on most people? I suppose that a potential employee could be less than savvy by giving someone’s name as a reference that might be a critic. However most people choose their references carefully and the trend is to prep the reference well ahead of time.
Have you ever lost a job due to a poor choice of references? Do people check references these days? Do you give references and what has been your experience? Have you ever given a good reference just to get a poor worker out of your area and into another?
