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I'm looking for some tips on how to handle a past employer who is giving out bad references about you. The issue is, I can't remove them from my resume cuz then I'd have to explain to a potential employer what I was doing for those years that are not listed on my resume.

 

I've brought this to the attention of the past employer, and they took it upon themselves to implement changes in how they give out references, but seems like nothing's changed cuz recently I found out they're back at it again.

 

I won't go into details as to "why" they're doing what they're doing - but trust me, I have no doubt it's intentional.

 

So, until I get them to straighten things out, what do I do in the meantime?

 

I mean, I feel like I can't win here. If a potential employer is told to "check with me" before they call the reference, that raises a red flag. Shoot, they may even just call them w/o checking with me. I also can't just leave that chunk of time off of my resume. I mean, I've held back on applying for a lot of things cuz I rather stay where I'm at right now, than risk my name being tainted with certain employers until I straighten things out with that past employer.

 

I appreciate any advice, thanks,

Edited by Gloria25
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One way you can deal with bad references is to call the past employer and ask them to agree with you on a neutral job performance reference. Preface that you are calling them to ask for their help, so that they won't become defensive.

 

Say something like, "I'm calling to ask you for a job reference. I understand that you had issues with my job performance while I was employed with you, so I'm hoping we can reach an agreement on how you present me to prospective employers, so that your reference doesn't compromise my chances of employment."

 

After they talk, ask your previous employer what your positive attributes were in your job performance. Make sure you let them know that you're not asking them to remove the negatives, but that you want them to also include the positives about your work performance with them.

 

But if the contact you have won't budge and refuses to negotiate a good job reference with you, find another person in the company (another supervisor or a coworker) and ask them to help you.

 

Also, before you call them, email them your resume so that they know how you are representing them to prospective employers. This way, when you call to ask them to negotiate a good job reference, you're both on the same page so to speak. Hope that helps.

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One way you can deal with bad references is to call the past employer and ask them to agree with you on a neutral job performance reference. Preface that you are calling them to ask for their help, so that they won't become defensive.

 

Say something like, "I'm calling to ask you for a job reference. I understand that you had issues with my job performance while I was employed with you, so I'm hoping we can reach an agreement on how you present me to prospective employers, so that your reference doesn't compromise my chances of employment."

 

After they talk, ask your previous employer what your positive attributes were in your job performance. Make sure you let them know that you're not asking them to remove the negatives, but that you want them to also include the positives about your work performance with them.

 

But if the contact you have won't budge and refuses to negotiate a good job reference with you, find another person in the company (another supervisor or a coworker) and ask them to help you.

 

Also, before you call them, email them your resume so that they know how you are representing them to prospective employers. This way, when you call to ask them to negotiate a good job reference, you're both on the same page so to speak. Hope that helps.

 

Thanks writergal...

 

I won't go into details, but I did already contact the former employer. What they were telling potential employers was illegal and unsubstantiated. They were/are doing it to retaliate against me.

 

While we didn't agree on the way they would conduct the reference checks, they "claim" they changed their policy on what would be said...but, like I said, I found out they are still giving me bad references.

 

I mean, there's ways you can be in compliance with a policy - yet still provide a negative reference. For example, your "tone". If a person calls you and asks for a reference and you're like "OH, JANE DOE, OMG" - while you didn't say anything negative, your tone is something that can be picked up on.

 

Thanks for the response though.

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Thanks writergal...

 

I won't go into details, but I did already contact the former employer. What they were telling potential employers was illegal and unsubstantiated. They were/are doing it to retaliate against me.

 

While we didn't agree on the way they would conduct the reference checks, they "claim" they changed their policy on what would be said...but, like I said, I found out they are still giving me bad references.

 

I mean, there's ways you can be in compliance with a policy - yet still provide a negative reference. For example, your "tone". If a person calls you and asks for a reference and you're like "OH, JANE DOE, OMG" - while you didn't say anything negative, your tone is something that can be picked up on.

 

Thanks for the response though.

 

Gloria, Have you tried filing a complaint with the State Labor Board or Dept of Employment. I'm thinking a letter from them would scare the hell out of that prev employer.

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Thanks writergal...

 

I won't go into details, but I did already contact the former employer. What they were telling potential employers was illegal and unsubstantiated. They were/are doing it to retaliate against me.

 

While we didn't agree on the way they would conduct the reference checks, they "claim" they changed their policy on what would be said...but, like I said, I found out they are still giving me bad references.

 

I mean, there's ways you can be in compliance with a policy - yet still provide a negative reference. For example, your "tone". If a person calls you and asks for a reference and you're like "OH, JANE DOE, OMG" - while you didn't say anything negative, your tone is something that can be picked up on.

 

Thanks for the response though.

 

Oh that's unfortunate that this previous employer is such a douche bag. Well, leave that job on your resume but just don't use that place as a professional reference.

 

Here's an upside: you can always use that employer as an example when prospective employers ask you the interview question, "tell me about a challenge you overcame and how you did it." Turn it around so you can use that awful place as a good example of how you overcame absolute unfairness in a proactive and productive manner. That will impress prospective employers more than a reference from them. There's always a silver lining in these situations. Trust me.

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One way you can deal with bad references is to call the past employer and ask them to agree with you on a neutral job performance reference. Preface that you are calling them to ask for their help, so that they won't become defensive.

 

Say something like, "I'm calling to ask you for a job reference. I understand that you had issues with my job performance while I was employed with you, so I'm hoping we can reach an agreement on how you present me to prospective employers, so that your reference doesn't compromise my chances of employment."

 

After they talk, ask your previous employer what your positive attributes were in your job performance. Make sure you let them know that you're not asking them to remove the negatives, but that you want them to also include the positives about your work performance with them.

 

But if the contact you have won't budge and refuses to negotiate a good job reference with you, find another person in the company (another supervisor or a coworker) and ask them to help you.

 

Also, before you call them, email them your resume so that they know how you are representing them to prospective employers. This way, when you call to ask them to negotiate a good job reference, you're both on the same page so to speak. Hope that helps.

 

One way some small firms have gotten around this, is by having one person represent the firm (or the entire HR department). However, finding someone who directly supervised you and had positive stuff to say about you might be an alternative.

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Oh that's unfortunate that this previous employer is such a douche bag. Well, leave that job on your resume but just don't use that place as a professional reference.

 

Here's an upside: you can always use that employer as an example when prospective employers ask you the interview question, "tell me about a challenge you overcame and how you did it." Turn it around so you can use that awful place as a good example of how you overcame absolute unfairness in a proactive and productive manner. That will impress prospective employers more than a reference from them. There's always a silver lining in these situations. Trust me.

 

I'm not the type to bad-mouth other firms. Do employers actually like this?

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I'm not the type to bad-mouth other firms. Do employers actually like this?

 

Oh let me clarify. I would never mention the employer by name as you're right that would backfire on the job candidate, for bad mouthing a previous employer in an interview. I just meant that I would use a work scenario example from that employer but would keep the example anonymous. I wouldn't say "well, when I worked at [company name] they were so awful...etc."

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If what they are saying is untrue -- and you can prove that -- hire a lawyer & sue them. That will make them shut up.

 

Do not list this employer as a reference. List them as past employment, only.

 

Redesign your resume so that your qualifications are highlighted & it's not just a chronological list of where you worked when.

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I'm assuming you already talked to HR, but if not and the bad reference is happening at a lower level, you need to report that to HR. Not sure if it's a state thing or what, but where I live employer isn't really allowed to give out a true reference, just how long you were there, etc. HR would know they shouldn't be doing that. If you're in a small world industry, then I know it's impossible to stop. I had a guy blackball me as well in a certain industry just because he didn't like me personally. It wasn't until he got fired when the company was bought out that anyone dared offer me another job in the industry. But make sure HR or someone very high up knows this is going on. You might even get whoever's doing it in trouble! Bonus.

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I would firstly stop using them as a reference. Put "no" to contact. It isn't always a red flag. There could be many reasons people ask employers not to contact a previous employer. I agree that if you have proof of what they are doing is unlawful, then sue. I used to work for someone whom I was afraid wouldn't give me more than a neutral reference, so I asked one of my more senior colleagues to give me a reference as my supervisor. Mission accomplished. They only called my previous boss for verification of employment. That was worrisome as well since it was a small company and he was literally the HR department. He likes to avoid phone calls.

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I would demand that all negative references stop or face the threat of a defamation lawsuit. You might not win the suit, but that's not the point - they would have to spend lots of money defending the suit and no employer in their right mind is going to go headfirst into that if they can avoid it. There are firms out there that you can hire to be a kind of fake reference checker. They will pose as a recruiter and then call your past HR dept up and ask for references. Once they get the dirt, then they've got proof that they're defaming you. If it's false facts (i.e. claiming you were always late when you never were, etc), then that would be real, legitimate grounds for a lawsuit. But even without that, the threat of litigation alone and having to spend time and money to defend it is enough to get most employers to simply give a neutral reference. That's what I would do if someone were standing in my way of employment without any just cause.

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If it isn't true then it is slander and illegal and you can take action. I am not sure why you are listing them as a reference, not every company on a resume requires a contact. That isn't suspicious.

 

I am confused why a ex employee would warrant this level of attention from an ex-employer.

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heresay will not hold up in litigation. written proof will. what written proof have you been privy to that the former employer is making false or incomplete references? Contact an employment lawyer. 99%of the time, its in the interpretation of reference, which cannot violate your civil rights or be false based on performance records on file. Our business is 60 employees and we are only allowed to confirm, time frame of employment, job title, and whether they left voluntarily or were relieved of that position. Otherwise the potential employer is on their own to deem the potential applicants credentials. even when asked if we would rehire them we make it clear that all applications are welcome for review.end of discussion.

you do have the option to ask them to respect your past work history.

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thefooloftheyear

Never could understand this...

 

Been an employer for decades...I only give two types of references...Good or nuetral..No need to keep someone from getting a job, just because I didnt think they fit in here...Plus, who needs the aggravation, if the person decides to get vindictive..

 

That being said, I have never knowingly had someone do something really egregious..Dont quite know how I would handle that..Might be hard not to stick it to them by letting the prospective new employer know who they were dealing with...Id never lie or make stuff up about a person..We all know the laws around this issue...again...dont need the aggravation..

 

TFY

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I'm looking for some tips on how to handle a past employer who is giving out bad references about you. The issue is, I can't remove them from my resume cuz then I'd have to explain to a potential employer what I was doing for those years that are not listed on my resume.

 

I've brought this to the attention of the past employer, and they took it upon themselves to implement changes in how they give out references, but seems like nothing's changed cuz recently I found out they're back at it again.

 

I won't go into details as to "why" they're doing what they're doing - but trust me, I have no doubt it's intentional.

 

So, until I get them to straighten things out, what do I do in the meantime?

 

I mean, I feel like I can't win here. If a potential employer is told to "check with me" before they call the reference, that raises a red flag. Shoot, they may even just call them w/o checking with me. I also can't just leave that chunk of time off of my resume. I mean, I've held back on applying for a lot of things cuz I rather stay where I'm at right now, than risk my name being tainted with certain employers until I straighten things out with that past employer.

 

I appreciate any advice, thanks,

 

A friend of mine is going through this and she did nothing wrong at work. The boss is a psycho, a manipulative guy who takes all credit when meeting shareholders, when they ask, "who got this idea" and he takes credit for it. There are some nasty employers out there.

 

He's now worried because he found out from ANOTHER employer of a different company she applied for a job. The The new company she applied to is a friend of who she works for, and called him to tell him one of his workers applying for a job.

 

Put your foot down mate. Sue the employer for

 

  • The information in the reference is misleading
  • Providing this misleading information has had a negative effect on your future employment
  • Employer was negligent in providing a reference.

You'd think if you did that, companies would be scared to hire you, right? No. I got hired by a big firm for having the balls to stand up for myself. The right company will understand. It's not new in the industry for employers acting like jackass, manipulating, bullying.

 

Some can be nasty. I've seen friends who don't do anything stay in some rut and those who fought back, after a while got a job they wanted. It's one of the reason why I'm setting my own business.

 

Stand up for yourself. This is your reputation, your life and stop fearing loss. Send a message.

 

1. Start by showing courts you were understanding by writing a letter to the employer stating to stop doing this. Be calm when you write as these will be evidence for you in court. DO NOT use phone. Use Letters because it's easy recorded evidence. You want written evidence.

 

2. If they don't reply, send again another letter. That's evidence for you. Any letters you receive, log it. You'll find some companies will deny but you can use statuary powers to find out what companies are saying about you. Find out which law is that and go for it. Another evidence.

 

Back and forth, send letters, collect your evidence.

 

3. Now, if they don't back off, and you're still having problems, you have shown to court that you did your best in honorable way, and to not waste time courts by communication by letters.

 

5. This is time, you make a decision to forward. After you go forward to sue them. Take them to court.

Edited by RockyCruz
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