Re: Damn Lawyers, damn lawyers, damn lawyers

[KnoxML1 <KnoxML1 -at- TEOMAIL -dot- JHUAPL -dot- EDU>]

Guy & Geoff talk about using employer refs. in a hypothetical
certification process. Guy asked if anyone else had run in to
lawyer problems when trying to give references on employees.

Yes.

I worked as manager (until downsized a couple of years ago) for
a company in Maryland that is a national computer software house
with headquarters in California & divisions in several states. This
company had an inflexible (national) policy about ANY manager talking
to ANYONE outside the company about ANY employee, past or present, for
ANY reason. It was   categorically forbidden. One had to refer calls to
the HR department, who would confirm dates of employment and salaries
(for mortgage applications & such) but who would reveal NOTHING else,
citing chapter and verse of company policy.

This policy even applied to inquiries from temp agencies about how well
their own employees were doing as temps for us--I was not allowed
to say "Jane's work is great" or "Joe comes in late too often."  Even
if a temp was performing unsatisfactorily, all I was officially allowed
to say was that the work had run out & we didn't need that person any more.

Talk about paranoia!


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