Worried about references.

Former Member

Ok so I have just been offered a job that I would love to have and I think I would be really good at it. However it is subject to satisfactory references.
They want to go to my last employer and immediately this started alarm bells ringing. Now I have no problem with authority and I have always got on very well with my managers on past jobs. However in the last job my manager was a really malicious person and would often bully me and another employee. I was once off work because I had to go and see a very close family member in hospital as they had a very bad accident. I attempted to ring in work to tell them I couldnt go in that day but after about 5 attempts I couldnt get hold of them so I had to leave it. The next time I was in work I was treated quite badly by the manager and told I had to attend a disciplinary hearing. I was still on my probation period with them at this time and I decided I would not work with this man any longer and I walked out.
Now I'm worried that this rash act on my part may have disastrous consequences with this job I am hoping to get.

Has anyone got any advice on what they might put on my reference?

Former Member

Honesty.

Honesty.

Honesty.

If you are honest about it, and explain it in the same way you have to use, then while I wont say you are going to get the job, its more likely you will than lying, and then they find out later, in which case regardless of the situation, they will not be able to trust you.

Former Member

Oh I have already told them of the situation. I told them as soon as they said they definitely wanted my last employer as a reference I just said "Oh well I'm not sure you will get a satisfactory one from them because we did not get on."

But all my other managers I have been fine with. He was just a grade A t**t.

Also I don't think they can put anything personal in a refernce can they? As it's open to interpretation and could lead to me making claims against them?

Former Member

Just be careful, its very easy to fill a reference with purely facts, and by omitting somethings, make it look very bad, without even telling a lie once.