Reference Advice

[jeffw0303]

After having been in Oz for 6 months I have just landed my first job. The agency have asked for 2 references one I have got from an ex employer of my last company (worked there for over 8 years). The second one my ex employer refuses to give the info needed as the request is 3 pages long and all they will supply is date I worked there and job title. Has anyone (preferably in the financial services field) come up against such an issue and what did you do to overcome it?

 

I am extremely worried I may lose this job offer so any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

 

Jeff

[Chortlepuss]

Do you know anyone at your ex-employer who will give you a reference? It could be a co-worker, colleague - they don't have to still be working there and they don't have to be your line manager. Approach people directly and ask them - many companies refuse to give references (I think this stinks) but you should be honest about this to your new employer and offer an alternative. I have friends from ex- employers who provide references for me (and vice versa) - all very legit

[jeffw0303]

thanks for the reply. Yes i can get personal references just not sure if my new employer will accept this though as iam unsure of the regulations here in Australia. Will have to see what the agency who got me the job say after the bank holiday weekend.

[Eera]

Definitely try and get a personal reference; if we get a reference that says "X work here for Y years" and nothing else, we generally interpret that as "they were pretty useless but we are legally not allowed to say bad things about them."

 

We are more than happy to accept things that aren't from a manager; people move on and the appropriate person may not be there any more, as long as someone who knows them personally can say whether they were generally good at their job and preferably not psychotic it's good.