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| *Ostroff, Fair and Company>>>Law & Legal |
HR Question? |
Hey just a quick question on reference checks. What questions can they ask for personal or work references. I was told it could only be 3 things. 1) Did employee X work for you 2) Wage verification 3) Would you rehire I have been asked a multitude of questions being that I am a supervisior and am constantly a reference. If anyone could enlighten me I would appreciate it. I think those are probably the most likely things. I was once a personal reference for a friend, and I was required to give details on her character, what her goals are etc. I said that sometimes she sets herself really high targets that she can't always meet, when I was asked what her weakest point is. But I said that she doesn't let it get her down and continues to try hard for the next goal. I guess you can be asked almost anything, usually related to the position though, which is why it's sometimes a good idea to give a copy of the job description to your referees. I believe they can ask you employment time and title. I would stay away from the " would you rehire" question. Too much of a liability. Wages can be proven by paystubs and W-2's your company provides. Best advice, let your H-R department, Payroll. Personell, or owner answer those questions. Again, a lot of liability for you as a supervisor. Veritas, There is no legal precedant for saying they can only ask for certain information. In truth, they can ask for as much information as you like so long as it's not protected health information. But the question is....how much information does your company wish to reveal? The liability comes when too much information is given. Generally speaking, most companies are limiting their exposure by giving only dates of hire and pay rate. Some don't even tell whether they would re-hire or not, since if they say "no", this could be taken as a negative job reference. The best way to handle this would be to contact your local HR department and ask them for the guidelines. ALWAYS make sure you have at the very least a signed release from the employee who is being asked about. In other words, don't just tell anyone their date of hire, pay rate, etc. Make sure they fax you a signed copy of a release from that employee which gives permission for you to release the information to them. This goes for current employees too who may need employment verified for credit purposes. I hope this helps! There is a difference etween a verification and a reference. A verification simply "verifies" the employee's previous work history: Title, Dates of Employment, Wage at Time of Termination, and Eligibility for Rehire. A reference has more to do with the employee's job performance - were they a good worker, how was their attendance, what did they not do well, and so on. Many companies these days prohibit giving references on former employees due to legal complications that can arise; however, it is not illegal for a company to attempt to get a reference on a prospective employee. Hope this helps - good luck. |
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