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I agree. If I was contacted by a former employee who I disliked, I'd just not respond or decline. At the end of the day, even if the person was a poor fit for your team, why would you not want them to succeed? What is the value to providing a bad reference? (.
The value is often that the person has a grudge and giving a negative reference is an outlet for that. Some grudge-holders might even relish the opportunity to be used as a reference for someone they secretly dislike.
Concerning information.. That sounds really heavy. I'm surprised you didn't question them on that.
If you have done nothing wrong, I think you have the right to try to defend your reputation and question it. They may not be able to give specifics, but it has to be better to ask, rather than accepting it like it is no big deal. I wouldn't want them to think for a second that this was expected or justified in any way.
Clearly this reference was a bad choice on this occasion, but as long as you can prevent this person from having any further influence on your job prospects, I think you will find what you are looking for.
Fake low unemployment levels or not - Getting a job these days is like running through Tough Mudder or a Medieval Gauntlet. Do not - I repeat - Do NOT get your hopes up ever. If you make it to start your first day there's a 50% chance you'll still be there 90 days later. If you pass probation maybe you're at 75%. These days even in Medical where they claim to be understaffed - They are incredibly picky and have ridiculous requirements and rough working environments to boot.
I can't see that you have anything to gain by reaching out to either person. I have never provided references without asking those persons first if they are willing to serve as a reference. I would also then give them another heads-up when I knew they would be contacted about a specific position. It's very presumptuous to provide someone's name and contact info without asking them first.
Since you did not ask all of your references in advance if you may use them as references, I would have suggested that rather than producing your list upon request, you offer to email them to the hiring manager following the interview. That would have given you an opportunity -- albeit brief -- to reach out to those individuals before sharing their names.
The person who provided the negative reference had little reason to do so other than being a jerk. I'm sorry that using that person as a reference seems to have cost you the job opportunity.
I'm surprised at how pissed I am about this situation.
OP, hindsight is 20/20, however this person's desire to block your new job opportunity shows the type of person they are. Trust me, they will get theirs in life as you're probably not the only one who has been on the receiving end of their negativity. That supervisor sounds like a miserable person who holds onto the past like it is present. You, on the other hand, seem to be positive, polite, and do whatever you need to succeed in life. This was a minor setback, but I can bet money you will get an even better opportunity sooner than you think.
This actually is a great reminder for those of us who read this thread, to remember to double-check our references every time, before providing them to a potential employer. Thank you for sharing, and I wish you well on your future career opportunities.
I'm surprised at how pissed I am about this situation.
OP, hindsight is 20/20, however this person's desire to block your new job opportunity shows the type of person they are. Trust me, they will get theirs in life as you're probably not the only one who has been on the receiving end of their negativity. That supervisor sounds like a miserable person who holds onto the past like it is present. You, on the other hand, seem to be positive, polite, and do whatever you need to succeed in life. This was a minor setback, but I can bet money you will get an even better opportunity sooner than you think.
This actually is a great reminder for those of us who read this thread, to remember to double-check our references every time, before providing them to a potential employer. Thank you for sharing, and I wish you well on your future career opportunities.
As commented before, there is no actual evidence that the reference caused the OP to be rejected or that they said anything truly negative. The OP only has the interviewer's statement that they were not hired because of a reference. It's all speculation with nothing to back it up. Of course it was a setback. Of course anyone could end up disappointed. It's also common after a disappointment to seek someone else to lay the blame on. Unfortunately they can't defend themselves.
Meh...seems like they were looking for a reason not to hire you. One less-than-stellar reference out of three is not going to stop most companies from making an offer to the candidate they really want.
This^^^^. OP you don't really know what this reference said or didn't say. You don't know who the "negative" comment originated from. If this college reference truthfully felt you weren't suited for that situation she just gave her opinion. It may not have been malicious or to deliberately hurt your chances, just to inform. In fact, she may have tried to save you from a job that would have made you miserable. Kind of wonder if that's why the reference sent you that email about her comments. We just don't know anything. Sure unexpected comments sting, but what can you do except move on?
Yes, I am wondering about that as well. It might be that the organization in question might have a poor reputation with the university and instead of saying that, she just said that she thought that the OP would be a “poor fit” instead of actually saying anything bad about the organization. She might have said positive things about the OP generally, but the comments might not have been about traits that were a good fit for that organization based on what the reference knew about that organization.
Either way, it just seems like it would have been best for the reference not to have said anything unless the place is truly awful. In which case, she could have been doing the OP a favor. Either way, it is best for the OP not to ask her for a reference in the future. I still wonder if the reference’s view could be colored by what the OP was going through at the time she got her degree, since it seems like she had some really hard stuff going on personally and that might not have been her normal way of acting.
Sorry for your ordeal. All things considered, for whatever reason... this company (or the hiring manager, rather) decided that you are not a good fit. If you plan to use any of the people for references in the future, then it might make sense to contact them and ask them what the hiring manager asked and see if they are willing to share their replies with you.
As for the person who gave you the bad reference... it is up to you if you want to contact said person again. The water is already under the bridge and there is nothing you can do now about the bad reference that was given. I'm not sure whether learning what was said about you will be helpful at this point, and it might only serve to upset you.
I agree with the poster who said that one bad reference won't stop a company that is hell bent on hiring a candidate.
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