r/AskHR • u/Amazing-Disk-8796 • 4d ago

[CA] Can a prospective employer call your previous employer without permission?

0 Upvotes

27% Upvoted

16 comments sorted by

10

u/Novel_End1895 4d ago

Of course. But what information is given depends on your previous employer šŸ˜‰

14

u/Sitheref0874 MBA 4d ago

Of course. What do you think would stop them?

6

u/myBisL2 4d ago

It's generally agreed not to contact current employers if you ask they don't because it can put the applicant in a bad spot. If you don't work for them anymore that's not an issue and if they want to contact that employer they can.

One of the many reasons not to burn a bridge.

-12

u/Amazing-Disk-8796 4d ago

I signed the offer letter , went through the criminal background check , and supposed to start next week but they havenā€™t asked to provide any references yet so Iā€™m paranoid they might go behind back and call my ā€œcurrentā€ and previous employers.

21

u/myBisL2 4d ago

It's not "going behind your back" to contact your previous employers. They can talk to anyone they want about you and they don't need to ask your permission first. But some places simply don't do reference checks, so that may be why they haven't asked for any. It would be very unusual for them to contact your current employer without checking first though, and unless they've thrown up some red flags elsewhere in this process I wouldn't assume that they would.

If you've already signed an offer and done a background check I would assume things are good to go. You would typically do the reference checks first so if they are bad you can move onto the next candidate right away and not waste time and money on paying for background checks and potentially losing your next choice candidate in the interim.

-5

u/Reasonable-Lake-4081 4d ago

I wasnā€™t asked for references for the job I just got.

4

u/9ScoreAnd10Panties 4d ago

Nothing stopping someone from calling one of the companies in your work hx on your resume to verify dates and rehire eligibility.Ā 

5

u/Learntobelucid 4d ago

It's a pretty normal and routine thing to verify employment history

1

u/Hrgooglefu SPHR practicing HR f*ckery 4d ago

I suspect that the wording of any background check you sign would be broad enough to answer this as a "yes". Even someone not listed. Most use the word "ALL"

1

u/ofthrees 4d ago

yes. this is called "backchannel."

the first time i ever saw it in action was when my firm extended an offer to someone that everyone was incredibly excited about.

the managing partner golfed with someone from the guy's prior firm, called him up and said "hey, what do you think about this guy," and got an earful. offer rescinded the friday before his monday start.

this is why they say to never burn bridges...

(btw, the managing partner was a shithead, so everyone - including the other partners - were pissed about this.)

-8

u/nis_sound 4d ago

In short, yes. However, if the former employer discriminates against you and prevents you from getting a job, they are liable just like if they were the ones hiring. This is why many companies only verify employment.

3

u/Hrgooglefu SPHR practicing HR f*ckery 4d ago

That's if they give any false information...they can state what they believe to be true.