May we contact your employer?

The Silent Assassin

This is a common question I have noticed on form based applications. What is your answer to this question?

I was brought up to believe when it comes to employment, you are not to let your current employer know you are looking elsewhere because that can cause all kinds of mess so most of the time I select no.

cyberguypr

We had this discussion a few weeks ago: http://www.techexams.net/forums/jobs-degrees/112184-company-contacting-current-employer.html. Good insight there.

NetworkNewb

Previous employers sure, current employer definitely not!

NovaHax

Not sure what the general consensus is on this, but I've always put "no". Hasn't seemed to hurt me thusfar.

E Double U

I only said yes to that question at my previous employer because they were having layoffs so management knew we were looking for jobs.

digitheads

Technically they can only contact the HR department for a reference - your current employer cannot legally release any more information no matter who they are. of course this does trigger somewhat of a disruption in your current job. I make sure to explain to them as delicately as possible the sensitive nature of the contact and if they are serious about employing you they will take your position into consideration. this has NEVER been a problem for me, ever. I have found that typically if you have other references and employment that can be verified, they wont bother. Rule #1, be nice. Make sure you have a rock solid reason for changing employment - you don't want them to think that you make a habit of job hopping...

Hammer80

NO! NO! NO!

I have seen employers that a fired employee's for even looking. Some companies HR dept's on regular basis actually check on Monster and Linkedin to see if their employees put up any new information that even remotely suggested that they were looking. You can imagine what would happen if they called your current employer for a reference.

Previous Yes! Current NO!

gespenstern

By default, Linkedin notifies everyone in your network about updates to your profile. Disable this in settings.

scaredoftests

noooo

NetworkNewb

gespenstern wrote: »

By default, Linkedin notifies everyone in your network about updates to your profile. Disable this in settings.

Not to mention if you don't have this disabled you are annoying the sh&t out of everyone else. So many of those damn updates

BradleyHU

NetworkNewb wrote: »

Previous employers sure, current employer definitely not!

/thread

mackenzae

such a silly question to ask.

tpatt100

Not unless you are independently wealthy and work just as a hobby....

Mr. Meeseeks

Dont understand why so many people so "no". Some HR departments wont continue if they cannot verify you still work at the company you say you work at. What if you were fired a week ago for stealing from the company?

I initially said no when interviewing for my current job. And HR called me back to ask again. I said yes this time. When I gave notice, management and check-writers were shocked.

Ever apply for a mortgage? They will need to perform the same employment verification. Your current employer wont know what its for and shouldn't get suspicious.

dou2ble

Mr. Meeseeks wrote: »

Dont understand why so many people so "no". Some HR departments wont continue if they cannot verify you still work at the company you say you work at. What if you were fired a week ago for stealing from the company?

I initially said no when interviewing for my current job. And HR called me back to ask again. I said yes this time. When I gave notice, management and check-writers were shocked.

Ever apply for a mortgage? They will need to perform the same employment verification. Your current employer wont know what its for and shouldn't get suspicious.

"Contact current employer" has more to do then verifying employment.

anhtran35

Previous: YES.
Current: NO.

koz24

Mr. Meeseeks wrote: »

Dont understand why so many people so "no". Some HR departments wont continue if they cannot verify you still work at the company you say you work at. What if you were fired a week ago for stealing from the company?

I initially said no when interviewing for my current job. And HR called me back to ask again. I said yes this time. When I gave notice, management and check-writers were shocked.

Ever apply for a mortgage? They will need to perform the same employment verification. Your current employer wont know what its for and shouldn't get suspicious.

I think most are paranoid about someone even calling HR to confirm employment. I've worked in smaller companies where HR was very close to management and I would also be very hesitant to allow this to happen as word quickly gets around. "I got a call about Company X confirming Joe Smith's employment here". Ugh. Not a cool situation to be in. Still not as bad as companies that ask for a W-2, but still annoying for sure.

cyberguypr

@Mr. Meeseeks see Hammer80's comment. I've also witnessed people being dismissed because they were either looking for a job online or someone called HR for a verification related to a new job. That's the beauty of employment at will. The only thing worse than not getting a new job is being fired from your current one. In regards to the mortgage comments, if someone calls for a verification HR will require the person to identify themselves even if just as a matter of due diligence. The argument that the employer doesn't know what it's for doesn't hold water unless you are talking about a lazy HR dept run by amateurs. If a company blindly answers questions regarding employees it is opening itself up for potentially serious legal entanglements. This is why lots of places are adopting a no-reference policy.

I'm not sure how long ago you bought a house, but things have changed a lot since the mortgage crisis. Again, anonymous simple call won't cut it anymore. Although it may provide base info for a qualification, when closing time comes most lenders will require a written VOE which they use to match against whatever you claimed. Same thing applies in reverse; if you submit the VOE they will call to make sure everything checks out.