7 Reasons Your Former Supervisor Might Give You a Bad Reference

Many of us are aware that a former employer is only supposed to offer limited information about previous employees – typically, employment dates and title. While the track record of corporate Human Resources is generally (but not always) consistent with this policy, it is a different story when considering former supervisors. While there are a number of reasons why your former supervisor might offer potentially damaging information about you, the bottom line is that you should never assume that your prior supervisor(s) is following company policy when they are contacted about offering you a reference.

What are the reasons why your supervisory references may be unfavorable? They include:

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About the Author

Jeff Shane is President of Allison Taylor, Inc., a reference and background checking firm doing business since 1984. He oversees matters of product development, online integration of services and attorney interaction on behalf of the company’s many clients. Jeff is frequently interviewed about employment trends and his interviews appear globally in newspapers and magazines.

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