Are my old employers allowed to give this flaky reference?

[recipw]

It seems a bit unfair.

My potential new employer has requested a reference from my old workplace.I left there in June.

They have come back with 'x was employed here from this date to this date, however, can't comment on performance much as off on maternity related sick and maternity leave for a long duration'

Is there anything I can do about this?

Thank you

Is it truthful?

non of the companies I have worked for would say this. Most would have declined to comment on performance.

Is it even true? Who wrote the reference?

It is quite true to be fair, but I didn't think they could disclose my maternity related absence and leave?

No.

letter - company letterhead

date

dear x

As requested we are providing a reference for

name
job title
start date
end date

the company policy is to provide standard references only.

yours sincerely

hr manager

if they would like to continue with the first one ask them if they would prefer you took advice from ACAS on reference guidelines.

It is quite unusual, more normal to simply confirm dates of employment. But I don’t know why you thought they weren’t allowed to say more. You have given permission for a reference and they can say what they like as long as it is true of course.

How do you know what your reference says?
I'd certainly be querying HR about disclosure of your sickness absence record re maternity issues

No, standard reference only as the sort of reference provided may lead to the job being turned down for mat related reasons.

that’s why there is a standard reference format.

most of what is posted here is complete rubbish. They can say anything that is accurate. It is both factual and accurate.

if they say something that is not accurate and that also leads to loss then you might have a complaint.

Im a lawyer.

Whether you are a lawyer or not I’m sure you don’t court discrimination under maternity legislation (or maybe you do!!)

standard reference

There is no “standard reference format” in law.

OP has given permission for a reference to be sought, the company can provide this in any format they choose. They will only be in trouble if they are inaccurate or lying.

Most companies take the sensible approach of confirming the bare minimum, because it avoids all possibility of subjectivity and potential lawsuits, not because law actually prohibits them from doing anything else.

Take some advice from ACAS

even if you are stuck with it this time round you will not be going forward

I never said it did

There isn’t a standard reference format. What is your experience here? Why would you post something that is complete untrue?

Theres no legal standard reference format. You can put something in if it’s accurate.

It may also actually help op. If they declined to comment on performance or said they ‘couldn’t comment’, that would have raised more suspicion that saying she was off a lot but it was all related to maternity.

I don’t know the answer to this one, but surely the maternity discrimination would be if the employer declined to give her the job due to maternity related absence? So that would discrimination by the new employer?

I suppose they could decline to give her the role if she can not prove that she has performed at the required standard in recent years. But that’s all job dependent.

If it's true then what's the problem with disclosing it? Doesn't seem 'flaky' to me, quite the opposite in fact

What's flaky about this?

Threads like these are unfortunately why I try to avoid giving advice on MN. People shouldn’t give advice when they have no idea what they’re talking about they just heard something from a bloke down the pub.

OP an employer can give any reference they like. Whether you have asked for one or not. It could say you’re a complete twat if that’s what they fancied saying.

However if they say something that is not accurate then they run two risks. Risk number one is that you find out they’ve lied, can then prove that you were about to be offered the job and then it was withdrawn because of the false reference. This is difficult to do since the new employer would have to cooperate and why would they. Plus who knows how long that job would have lasted anyway.

risk number two is that your reference says you’re the best thing since sliced bread and you turn out to be shit. In this case the new employer can potentially sue the old one if they can demonstrate that they wouldn’t have hired you but for the glowing reference. This type of claim is uncommon but it is in theory possible.

HTH.

Protection from maternity discrimination starts when pregnancy is announced and ends upon return to work. So I don’t see how any party could be found guilty of maternity discrimination when OP is not currently protected by it anyway.

Some terrible early advice. Employers only have to tell the verifiable truth. It's not discriminatory to say OP was on mat leave or that she had sick leave. They have clarified that it was maternity related sick leave which is slightly helpful.

I would ring Acas tbh or your union if you're a member.

HR manager here.
Technically it's fine they can say what they want so long as it's factual.
Agree it doesn't do you any favours though.
No idea why pps are saying standard ref only, that's not true.

Technically it's fine and to be fair it sounds like you were off a lot so they don't really know whether you were doing a good job or not. It's a reasonable reference in the circumstances.

Hmm... I'd give acas a call. Or pregnant then screwed.

How long is a long duration? A week? A month? One pregnancy? Two pregnancies? Ten? One of my pet hates in work is vague terms like this.

Regardless of what the law is, ethically its a bit fucking shit and quietly speaks volumes about the reasons why you probably left said company.

Just because someone has a right to bring a discrimination case/protected characteristic does not been that they have been discriminated against.

Is the reference is factually correct?