can an employer give you a bad reference ??

Answer 1

yes, but only if the info they are giving is correct.

it is illegal to lie on a reference - but if you were not a good employee then it would be your own fault

Answer 2

I work for a pre-employment company and they can give you a bad reference. It really all depends on what state you're in and what guidelines the company has for references. Like most of the people said, they usually will not give one and that's just as bad unless the HR rep states that it's the company's policy not to give references. On most of the calls we make, the most used answer is "They cannot comment" which doesn't mean it's bad but it depends on how your future employers read into that. Do some checking around before you put them down as references!

Answer 3

There is a differene between a bad reference and the truth -
If an employee has poor attendance, poor performance or was dimissed, then a referee can say so. They cannot slander you.

As an employer who seeks reference regularly, I know that if an employer was to refuse to give me a reference it would speak volumes and I would not hire the person on that basis.

Answer 4

they cannot put bad things on your reference like "he's crap at work" "he's always late" "he is a lazy *****" but they can word a reference to say those things or in their opinion, also some employers can and have refused to give a reference and a "No Comment" which basically says to another employer steer clear

Answer 5

They are not suppose to but they do sometimes. I had a friend that was giving a reference they thought was good and then found out the company was saying bad things about them. Even if the company isn't suppose to say bad things, don't trust that they won't. Talk to them and ask what they will say, if you have a question about it.

Answer 6

A law abiding employer is not permitted to give you a bad reference, or refuse to give one.

However, they are only obliged to disclose the fact that you worked for them for x amount of time, and had x amount of time off sick.

Answer 7

A former employer can give a factual account of your work history with him.If you feel you've listed a hostile reference on you subsequent job apps., then note that he would likely be a hostile reference on your app.

Answer 8

No not in England it's illegal in America they can. In the U.K they can refuse to give a reference which is pretty much the same thing but they can't say anything bad about you.

Answer 9

yes they can, because it's confidential the information they give about you, you'll never know what they actually say about you, my employer gave a bad reference about me before just because she didn't want me to leave.

Answer 10

I know in GA the only info they can give is date of hire, length of employment, reason for leaving (i.e. resigned or terminated) and if you are on rehire status--the potential employer must garner what he will from that bit of info...I do believe the amount of info you are allowed to give varies from state to state.