You can't be sure but what you could do is go to himan resources and get your personal information concerning how long you work there,your work performance, lateness and absences. When you go to interviews take the info with you, that way when they and get a negative feedback and it's different from what is being said from your old boss , they're going put 2 and 2 together and see that's something is not right. Remember karma has no respective person and it will come back and bite him for sure. I pray you find something better then you left with better pay , benefits and you enjoy the work. Stay focus be encouraged and don't give up!

It is unlawful for them to bad mouth you and cause you to lose employment. A way around this is that for reference - list the names of former co-workers who you know will give honest references. You can also have a friend check. I have often called on old co-workers to give references. And if I were asked about the supervisor I'd just say that the company had gone through some re-structuring and that they weren't available - the fact that this was true helped. :D

I thought the law allowed that checks like that come back to you?? You could trick-trap them??

I have a diverse work history; one company when I left owed them $400 or. $600 and...they moved to re-Recruit me few-years-ago. So, "innocence" in this world TOO! Maybe wording but you will need to be honest/ wise! You can't win everyone!!

If you do determine that your former employer is bad mouthing you through having someone contact them on your behalf for a reference, you can sue them for slander, if the statements they are making about you are false. Many people have done this before. A cheaper alternative is to post online comments about this employer's treatment of you on sites like glassdoor.com where people often provide reviews of former companies where they worked.

You can easily find out. Have a friend call for a reference on you and see what they say or don't say

Thomas,

Did we work at the same place? I had that same feeling when I was let go from a position I had held for 13 years. The owner had passed and his son had taken over. I knew I would be one of the first to go because the son and I had never gotten along, however I was interviewing for positions that I felt I should have gotten hands down but wasn't getting. Since the city I live and work in has a relatively small manufacturing community and many of the companies I was interviewing with had a relationship in some way with my former company, I felt that it was either he was bad mouthing me (which I still believe happened), or he had given the company such a bad reputation around town because of the way he was that they saw that company name on my resume and tossed it in the trash.

I spoke to the career consultant at my college about my feelings that he might have been bad mouthing me and while she didn't deny that it could be happening what she did say was that it was very tough to prove. She said she did know of a woman who won a case but it was out of pure luck. She had a phone interview with a company and they let it slip that her former employer had said some bad things about her, so she took them to court and won because they were standing in her way of making a living. She also said it was a long and hard fought battle so if you are able to get proof that that is what is happening, you still may be in for a long haul. If you had someone in HR you know and trust who could call your former employer for a reference to see what is being said, that may answer the question for you.

Also, I figured out that my not getting the jobs I was interviewing for may have also been because I was coming off as angry and bitter over being let go. That was my initial reason for contacting the career counselor and we went through a mock interview and she agreed that my anger was coming out. She gave me very helpful tips on toning it down. So you may want to think about your interviewing demeanor, too.

Good luck!

A former employer may only give employment dates, but may be asked if they would rehire you, so that could be something to think about. You should talk with you attorney about what your options are. If its an age issue your attorney can address it through EEOC.

Its a game thats been played all the time, when you get to interview you can say such and so told me I would never work in this field again, if it is a competitive company your chances just went up ( especially if he is disliked by his competition). On your application you can spin it as parted because of management style differences or personality. As far as ageism I never claim more than 10 years experience and never give dates of employment past 10 years much less my graduation year, you want that? Talk to me in person in a real interview or hire me and I will bring my diplomas with me for HR to place in my file.

Have one of your friends call in for a reference check, this will give you some better insight as to how your current employer speaks about you. Good luck, Leslie B.

Make sure you get the offer letter before you say yes to contacting your former employer, Honestly employers should not engage in this type of behavior, only hire date , last position , should be given in writing and they should use a background company to check your background.