Reference agreed in settlement, ex-employer wont provide reference!

[Hamsternautss]

I was made redundant in 2016 and it states in my settlement they would provide a reference, no time limits were mentioned. My employer to be has just approached them for a reference (8 years later) and they have replied saying they wont give me a reference as I left employment greater than 7 years ago. I have emailed them back myself attaching the agreement, but just wondering where I stand with this?

Seems a long way back to go. Have you been out of the workforce for an extended period?

Are they your last employer? It's not a 'we will provide a reference for evermore' agreement with no end date. Or they could just say @Hamsternautss worked here from x to 2016 which isn't very informative?

Yes I've been out of work for 8 years (had 3 children) and they are indeed my last paid employment.

from what you say it sounds like they are in breach of contract (the settlement agreement) & the fact it was 7 years ago should make no difference. So you can assert your rights, but if they wont play ball legal redress won’t be quick enough to secure the job. To try & resolve this practically you could say to your new employer, something like ‘I’ve requested a reference but I’m having difficulty getting one because it was so long ago due to my career break. Is there any kind of reference I can supply?’ Eg maybe from voluntary work or PTA or something?

Is there an individual at the organisation you could approach for a reference?

I couldn’t get any references from a 20 year career when I was out of work raising DC for 7 years.

It was due to GDPR as companies are supposed to delete ex employee records after 6 years.

Luckily I still had pension statements to prove I worked for these companies!

It's because it's over the required retention period for employment records according to U.K. laws.

"Statutory retention period: 6 years after the end of the pay reference period following the one that the records cover."

It is to do with data protection. In my previous organisation they few occasions this happened the candidate provided 3 personal references instead and a document from HMRC which confirmed they weren’t in employment/ hiding any bad employment history from us. We’d then be super on the ball with the probation process. The new employer should have a process for dealing with this it’s not super uncommon.

It was due to GDPR as companies are supposed to delete ex employee records after 6 years

Completely agree...data can only be held for certain purposes, they don't need to hold details on your work performance and only need to hold tax details for 6 years.

If you have a job offer call the HR or hiring manager to explain the situation and they may accept a personal reference.

As your employment with them was so long ago, it’s not really unreasonable. They probably don’t have your records anymore, your line manager who knew you and would be able to provide an accurate reference may not even work there any more. I think it’s unrealistic to expect a reference from them 8 years later.