To think something must have happened

[MrsDragonLady]

Early last year, DH gave up his job to be a stay at home dad, so that I could change my career. The job I had taken was crap hours and pay, but it was entry into a field that didn’t come up very often.

Now, 18 months on, I’ve secured a better job and the hours mean he will be able to go back to work too, something which he had always planned on doing.

He applied back to the company he had left, but on a different department. He got rejected before interview. So he applied again back onto the department he had left. He had 9 years experience and had been put forward by a former colleague that was still in the department. The manager wasnt the same one as when he left. He was basically offered the job at interview, but got told he would have to wait for the official email from head office to confirm. A week later he got a “after much deliberation, we have decided not to offer you the job” email! He contacted for feedback and got told he wasn’t the right fit for the position, but they would consider him for future roles.

Fast forward two months, he’s applied for 8 more jobs at that company and been rejected for them all.

He’s now moved onto applying at different companies and having the same issue with every single one. He’s getting an interview, being provisionally offered the job, then after being passed on to head office he gets a rejection email around a week later.

Could it just be a massive coincidence, or am I right in thinking that something must have happened for him to keep being rejected like this. He’s applied for well over 30 jobs now in various postions, companies and for different hours and not been considered for any of them!

Give him the benefit of the doubt, change his references and go from there.

In the U.K its not illegal to give a bad reference, as long as its truthful. Most employers don't want to open themselves up to any type of legal action. So if someone was really dreadful and was sacked say they tend to either refuse to give a reference or just give dates of employment
I think it sounds like his reference, I'd be asking him has he been sacked or something?

Some companies have illegal blacklists for people they deem fit to blacklist ie people who stick to the rules a bit rigidly especially electrician and building contractors, If hubby is in a union that might be a way of finding out there was a out of court settlement a few years ago connected to this list but people had to sign a non disclosure agreement in relation to settlements, best wishes

We don't re-employ because someone who left once is fairly likely to leave again - generally in less time than they spent with the company last time.

This is really curious OP. He has really specific skills that you would think are
fairly desirable. I could guess at lots of explanations but have no idea whether the environment I work in is anything like a company a butcher would work for.

I think as a PP said the best place to start is to do a GDPR request to his original company to get all the info they hold on him. Good luck!

Criminal record?

Your partner is very young to have had all four children from age of ten and then taking leave to care for them. I would say that this is the root of your problem, the employer does not think he can walk the walk and care for a young family.

Only 30 job applications, doesn't he want to work as he is not really trying or showing any interest.

I have had a similar problem. It's taken me over 2 years to get another job after being made redundant. It's an employer's market and a lot seems to be who you know

I’m veering towards it being something to do with the SAHD thing - I bet the management team have a discussion after the interview and think he might be unreliable, talking time off to look after sick kids etc etc. Obviously they won’t feed back that’s the reason if he asks, they’ll just say they found someone else with more up to date skills/ experience etc.

Is there any way he could go self employed doing something? that would be one solution.

It's the children. They think you'll have another child soon and/or he'll be taking time off on a regular basis to care for sick children etc.

I'm very sorry - it's utter crap.

He got his job as soon as he finished college, first interview he had, first job he ever had and he’s stayed in it ever since
Ahhhhhhhhh!
In which case it sounds like he has no proper experience of interviews and techniques/presentation.
He should go down to the job centre as they will give him free help on updating his interview skills.

Also, I would suggest taking a look at AskMyManager.com. It's a great resource.

Sorry, that would be Ask A Manager:

www.askamanager.org/

References are exempt under GDPR rights. So a company (either giving or receiving the reference) would be legally OK not to provide it.

I would do some digging. My brother's new boss was singling my brother out and making his life at work pretty horrendous. He worked for a company's online delivery centre as a transport coordinator. His routes would be changed as they "lacked logical ordering" yet the new route as done by the boss, sent crews across London and back again unnecessarily. He was pulled up for being late when he wasnt he had spoken to some one with a problem so clocked in 5 minutes or so late yet another employee who was regularly 30 minutes late and left 30 minutes early was never pulled up etc etc. He left and pursued a claim for constructive dismissal. He was turned down for every job he applied for, with agencies, permanent positions, everything. His solicitor found out that after he left, the boss had concocted a theft allegation and told all the agencies and local companies about the theft allegation so companies wouldn't hire him. He took them to court and won a fair settlement. He also looked outside the area slightly and has landed a much better job. Better rotating, more weekends off, better pay, less stress and easier to get to 😁.

Whilst a company is not able to give a bad reference, they can decline to give a reference which is just as bad, I'd get hubby to redo hid reference list. Also give him the opportunity to tell you exactly under what circumstances he left his last position. All sounds kind of quirky to me.

I think possibly he's over egging what happens at interview. Maybe because he's so desperate to get thr job.

It's very unlikely interviewers are discussing start dates with him and continually saying he's got the job at interview stage. Very unlikely indeed. Once maybe, but not repeatedly.

The fact his old company don't want him back though is concerning. The fact they interviewed him says it's nothing about his previous performance, it's something that's happening at interview.

I wonder also if he's being pushy. Pushing them into saying he's got the job, which is making people uncomfortable, so they are saying glib things like you'd make a good addition to the team whilst thinking otherwise,

I'd honestly doubt they are all saying to him he's got the job and look out for the email. That's incredibly unlikely as said. One maybe. But not repeatedly.

This could be way off- but I imagine butchery to be a pretty traditional male industry. Is it possible that being a SAHD is what’s causing the problem? Head Office takes one look and says either “what a wimp- only real men on this team” or “hmm- he’s done that once-if they have another baby he’ll do it again” Obviously both illegal- but impossible to prove.

He needs to use an FOI to get a copy if a reference. He seems to be losing these jobs in reference take up after the interview stage.

It’s a Subject Access Request, not FOI, and employment references are excluded from having to be released.

www.xperthr.co.uk/faq/what-rights-of-access-do-employees-have-to-job-references/57062/

It is not illegal to give a bad reference; references have to be accurate.

But, by this token many organisations only give the minimum, basic facts eg start and end dates, job title on leaving, reason for leaving (and the last one can even be left off!).

I used to work for an organisation who would mark HR files 'Do not re-employ' usually if the person had raised a grievance, challenged management decisions etc. Not at all legal but they did it. Is it a particular profession where different organisations talk to each other?

But yes, I'd do a Subject Access Request, though more than likely they will conveniently destroy anything incriminating .

But yes, I'd do a Subject Access Request, though more than likely they will conveniently destroy anything incriminating

That would be unlawful.

And references wouldn’t be covered by the request.