What most job seekers don’t realize is that many companies don’t conduct their reference checks until after you’ve started the job. Companies have a 90-day “probationary” period that allows them to terminate your employment relationship at will, and many use this time to complete all the hiring paperwork and checks dictated by company policy. Before you lose that perfect job due to an unfavorable reference , take the time to ensure that your references are responding appropriately to employment inquiries. The simplest and most effective way is to conduct a reference check(s) through a professional reference checking company like Allison & Taylor Reference Checking. If a reference check confirms negative or inappropriate feedback, their documented response gives you the foundation for recourse to prevent further career damage. One such action is the option of a Cease & Desist letter , which can help ensure that the transgressor will stop their actions out of fear of corporate reprisal. In offering this service, Allison & Taylor Reference Checking works with attorneys well-versed in employment law who will review the client’s report from a negative reference, speak directly with them to discuss protocol and options, and then issue the letter to the organization where the negative commentary arose. As part of the overall fee, Allison & Taylor Reference Checking then re-conducts the original reference check to determine if the negative reference is continuing to offer harmful commentary. This rarely turns out to be the case – the documented “success rate” of this letter is extremely high. CHAPTER 73 Perfect Fit for a New Job? 4 Interviews Later, Why They Stop Communicating with You Perhaps you can relate to this job-seeking scenario: you’ve sailed through the interviews with flying colors and have been told that the job is virtually yours after they get back to you in short order. And then…no further response from them. You politely follow up with them and are told that the company decided to go “in a different direction”. Or even worse, your calls or emails are no longer returned. What happened, when everything was looking so positive? Unfortunately, a very good possibility is that the prospective employer conducted a reference check(s) with your former employer and heard something unfavorable about you. Most job seekers are under the misimpression that employers cannot – and will not – say anything negative about their former employees. While this is almost universally a corporate guideline, the unfortunate reality is that countless references violate this policy on a daily basis. While such negative input typically comes from a former supervisor, Human Resources can be a problem as well – particularly if they indicate you are not eligible for rehire, or left the company under involuntary circumstances. Complicating this situation, prospective employers – for their own legal protection – will almost never tell you that a negative reference was received. You will be left wondering what the true reason for your non-hire actually was. The good news: you can identify for yourself what your former employers are actually saying about you. Consider utilizing a firm such as Allison & Taylor Reference Checking, Inc. , a reference checking service in business since 1984, that will interview your reference(s) and document their input word-for-word. Approximately 50% of all reference checks conducted by Allison & Taylor Reference Checking uncover negative input from the reference. Any such feedback can be used for remedial legal purposes or, more simply, a Cease-&-Desist letter that has an exceptionally high (99+%) documented success rate. A negative reference is likely to continue offering the same input to every prospective employer that calls unless you detect it and take steps to stop it. Job seekers can lose many opportunities before they realize what is happening. It’s best to be proactive as it is never too early to identify – and address – a negative job reference.
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