Hello everyone! I hope your week is going well so far, we’re almost halfway to the weekend already. You’ve got a treat today as it’s another week from me, well at least I hope you see that as a treat! Our lovely Robyn is enjoying a well earned break and our lovely Emma and Philip are lazy so and so’s!
Last week I told you I was going to Anglesey for the weekend, and we had such a lovely break. The sun shone, and if you were out of the wind, it was actually quite warm! We all caught the sun when we were sat on the beach. We didn’t do very much, just enjoyed the view, had a couple of BBQs and got the firepit going in the evening which the kids loved. They also became obsessed with the telescope that was at the house, maybe we have a couple of budding astronomers on our hands? I came back feeling very rested, it was a proper reset which was very much needed. I think all weekends should be three days…
Now, I’ll keep it short and sweet this week with what may seem a simple question, but actually (as with most things in employment law) is maybe not quite as simple as it would first appear.
Do you need to give a reference for an ex-employee?
In short, no, in most cases you are not legally required to give a reference for an ex-employee.
However (like I said, never that straight forward), if you only refuse requests for certain people (say, anyone who’s raised a grievance or been on maternity leave or had health issues for example), that could lead to a claim for discrimination. Did you know ex-workers can still bring discrimination claims even if they don’t currently work for you?
If you work in a sector where references are expected as part of due diligence (education, healthcare or financial sectors for example), then whilst refusing in these contexts may not be unlawful, it could raise questions.
If you do choose to give one, it has to be factually accurate, fair and not misleading. That means no exaggerating the positives, and definitely no underhand comments disguised as facts!
Remember, we live in a litigation society nowadays and if you give a glowing reference and that results in a new employer taking somebody on and suffering losses, they may try and bring a claim against you. If you give a poor reference and your ex-employee misses out on a job, they may bring a claim against you.
What’s an employer to do?! Well…
What most employers will do, and what we would usually recommend you do, is to stick to a basic, factual only reference which confirms start date, end date and job title and a statement that it’s policy not to comment on suitability and then the usual disclaimer about not accepting responsibility if something goes wrong.
My quick fire tips would be:
- Keep it neutral & factual
- Send it from a HR team/ administrator
- Have a standard form across the business
- Ensure your managers know what to do and who to send a reference request to
So, the bottom line? You can refuse a reference request, but it is often best not to and if you do decide to give one, keep it factual and consistent.
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