HR / People attraction professionals: Do companies check a candidate´s references without informing the candidate nowadays?

5 Comments

1. AnonymousJune 7,2024 at 3:01PM UTC

   Honestly, where I am, we don't do references. If someone calls to verify employment, we would provide dates of employment and job title.

   Are you providing references when you apply or not until asked (in the last 3-4 years, I can only recall one time where I had to provide references at time of application).

   Hiring teams should not be calling previous employers for candidate feedback without you being aware. That's not to say it doesn't happen (I've been on candidate end before and found out from a friend when I interviewed for a position where he worked and was rejected that this happened to me...the general manager of that company was apparently the husband of a woman I worked with and she did not like me and made sure to drag my name through the mud) but it shouldn't happen.

2. AnonymousJune 7,2024 at 4:11PM UTC

   It is not required to let candidates know if they check references or not, only give ones that you have faith in for positive feedback. It is also not required to let you know if they check your social media.

3. AnonymousJune 7,2024 at 5:00PM UTC

   In my area, people "check around" with their network, assuming the "official" references will all be good. Probably not the answer you were looking for, but the reality.

4. AnonymousJune 7,2024 at 5:09PM UTC

   Companies do background checks these days but they have to get your consent to do it. Now, IF someone personally knows someone at your company who knows you, there is no way to know if something is shared behind closed doors in a casual setting. And sometimes they don't have to say anything specific but can give an innuendo that's perceived negatively. Perception is reality even if it's a false perception. I've been a hiring manager for over 20 years and no one has ever called me for a reference for any employee. Also, we are told, especially if an employee is fired for bad behavior, to send all requests and inquiries to HR. So, I wouldn't worry about your previous employer. They won't say anything negative unless in the very rare case, the requestor happens to be a very close friend or relative and it would be done secretly.

5. Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition SpecialistJune 8,2024 at 3:00AM UTC

   How, specifically, would they know who your previous manager is?

   References should never be listed on a resume. References should not be provided until a company indicates they want to make you an offer. Until then, your references are none of their business.

   References, if they're requested, are provided by you. If you're not giving out your previous manager as a reference - which I'll assume you aren't if you're concerned they would say not nice things about you - I don't see how a prospective employer would know who your previous manager is.

   Many companies these days don't even do reference checks - they do employment verification and education verification. They're looking for dates employed and title.

   When you fill out the background check form, you indicate if you authorize them to verify that particular employment. For the most part, it's done electronically - many companies now store their employment records with a third party company, so the background check company isn't even contacting your former employer.

   And then we have back door reference checking. Which I well and truly hate. This usually happens between people who know each other.

   The prospective employer sees you work or worked at XYZ company and their friend works at XYZ company and they pick up the phone and call their friend and ask about you. Most companies have policies that the friend should not answer those questions, but not everyone follows company policy. You know how that goes - prove it's not just a conversation between friends.

   The chances that some random manager at a company you're interviewing with would pick up the phone and call your former employer and just randomly ask to speak with someone - that would actually speak with them - is pretty low. Most companies understand that because of legal liability, their employees should not be talking to random people who call and have a policy against employees do that.

   Indeed, if someone called me, I'd assume it was some sort of sting operation to see if anyone would be so stupid as to blurt out info about a former employee without their authorization. It's a huge legal liability. Could it happen, I suppose there's a small chance, but I would think in this day and age, instances of this would be few and far between.