Cannot get a work reference because of GDPR - is that right?

[Elwyn]

Been offered a new job after 13 years of being a stay at home parent. New job wants HR at previous job to simply confirm I did indeed work there for the dates I stated in my CV. Old job says they can't confirm because their GDPR policy means their data doesn't go back that far. Is this correct? Seems like this could cause problems for people who have had caring responsibilities lasting longer than 7 years. I can get round this problem, luckily, but others could end up having problems which seems unfair.

Possibly.
If you have a workplace pension their records should be kept for a lot longer.

Put simply they do not have records for that period because the GDPR requires that you only store necessary information.

If it’s just dates that need confirmed then a person can suppply that from their HMRC account online.

Possibly true. Do you have any payslips of p60 from those dates? P45?

Also if you do not have payslips or other such proof of your employment at the time, then it is not fair to complain that your ex employer of many moons ago does not either.

When I look at my HMRC account online it only goes back five years.

if you want other years, you can print off a form to get them
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-insurance-employment-history-request

It will all depend on their retention policies, but they can't keep data for longer than required and they must have a valid legal basis for keeping it.

My organisation wouldn't be able to provide a reference going that far back either. We just don't keep the data for that long.