Should You Hire Someone With a Bad Reference

References are often a crucial part of the recruitment process. Employment references can help hiring managers verify experience, assess professional conduct, and identify potential concerns before making a final hiring decision. But what happens when you find the ideal candidate, only to discover that their reference is less than perfect? 

Understand the Situation Before Rejecting a Candidate

An employer’s immediate reaction to a poor employment reference may be to remove the candidate from the recruitment process altogether. However, before making a final hiring decision, it is important to understand the full context behind the reference and assess the situation fairly.

In some cases, a negative reference may come from a former employer who was unhappy about the employee leaving, or from a manager with whom the candidate had a difficult working relationship. 

It is important to give the candidate an opportunity to explain the circumstances. For example, if the reference highlights a high level of absence, ask a bit more about the situation and their reasons for the absence, before discounting them completely from the process. If concerns are raised about attitude or conduct, ask the candidate for more information. Candidates may have made mistakes in previous employment, but that is not to say that the mistakes will be repeated. They may just have been extremely unhappy in the job.

Ask for Specific Details on the Employment Reference

Employers have a responsibility to provide references that are fair and accurate. If the employer has provided a poor reference, you can ask them for specific details. For instance, if they have mentioned poor attendance, ask them to provide the number of absences and the timescale. If the negative employment reference is around poor attitude, ask the employer to provide examples. It is important to dig a little deeper to ensure the information provided on the employment reference is accurate.

Request Additional References

It is difficult to get an overall view of a candidate from one employment reference, which is why it can be useful to ask for more than one. If you have received a negative employment reference, you might want to inform the candidate about it and suggest they provide another two so you can get a more balanced view. For example, if two are positive and one is negative, it is likely that the poor reference is based on a personality clash or the candidate having a negative experience in the job.

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