employment questions?

Question

I am currently unemployed and looking for a new job. What I am wondering is how much can potential future employers ask of my former employer(s). What types of questions are they allowed to ask? What can they not ask? Can they ask how much I was making? Can they ask about my strengths/weaknesses? Are they simply allowed to ask if I really worked there? Any info would be appreciated, thanks.

Answer 1

It depends on the State, and whether you sign a waiver.

Generally speaking, an employer can only confirm dates of employment.

Answer 2

They can ask anything they want to that's not related to race, gender, religion or other protected catagories. Most former employers won't tell them much though, beyond confirming the dates that you did work there, and often whether you'd be eligible for rehire if you applied again.

Sometimes a potential employer will ask you to sign a release to get info from former employers. Then the former employer might be a little more open with them, but still probably won't say much. Depends on the employer though, and on your relationship with them.

When I'm called for a reference, if the person did a really good job I'll say so, otherwise I'll fall back on the confirmation of employment.

Answer 3

If the question is really "what can the potential employer ask" then the answer is anything they want. It's all about what your current or previous employer can answer. Some are regulated depending on local laws to disclose only dates of employment and confirm what you did there. Others are protected by a Good Samaritan act that allow them to disclose any potential problems so that other employers don't end up getting burned by someone who just got fired for sexual harassment, etc.

Answer 4

It depends on state. If the old employer knows what is good for them they answer honestly because there have been cases where new employers have taken old ones to court for damages based on the fraudulent references given by the old employers.