Help Needed

humantraffic

Hi

Need some advice,

I've currently been off sick for 4 months with stress and depression with has been excabated by current employers actions,
on doctors advice started looking for a new job, been through the interview process and received a job offer and contract subject to references.

However new employers want me to hand in my notice and take up their job. No problems there.
but new employers havnt obtained references (which will either show sickness issues and i have a o/s conduct case in which the manager lied to get me in trouble - managers words were "i will wreck your career") with my current employer hence being off sick for 4 months- bullying by my employer in which they labelled me aggressive and other things- but my word against theirs

I dont mind my new employers obtaining references but i dont want to be left without a job if it shows the o/s issues as I have finanical commitments ... as you might consider this is stressful.. but what is a better way to go about things? Ask my new employers for a reference before i hand in my notice?
So i am better protected?
Or just hand in my notice and potenially be left unemployed when they get the reference?

(btw my current employers are aware i that want a change in role in my current job. so a reference request wouldnt be unexpected)

Thanks in Advance

mynameistallulah

humantraffic wrote: »

Ask my new employers for a reference before i hand in my notice?

I am not sure what you mean by this - an employer cannot give you a reference if you have not done any work for them.

humantraffic

sorry i wasnt clear enough...
ask my new employers to obtain references from my current employers before i hand in my notice.

DCFC79

Why not ask the new employer if the sickness would be an issue ?

bristol_pilot

Simple rule - NEVER hand in your notice until you have an unconditional offer, in writing, for your new job with an agreed start date.

A job offer subject to References (or to medical etc) is not an unconditional offer so don't hand in your notice. If your new employer is a professional Company, they would expect no less. Is the new employer a small business? They don't seem to know how to behave.

I would assume that the sickness etc would be an issue, unless and until you know for sure otherwise.

Evilm

I have dealt with this before after a member of management got upset with me and sacked me.

I clearly told the new employer that the reference from that company would likely be tainted because of X reason, job responsibility creep and personality conflict between myself and the manager. I also admitted a certain amount of liability for the issue that I got in over my head and didn't know how to get out - in this case that didn't matter as the job I was going to was structured.

Luckily that company was known as being a bit...uneven... and when they tried to scupper the job for me he was actually angry on my behalf.

I know its not good to badmouth prior employers and as a rule I don't. However I knew I had to get in first since they would be checking that reference.

The new employer would likely realise about the sickness issue anyway so you have to weigh the potential risk of telling them the prior reference will be tainted by it against the potential for the bad reference ruining your job because you didn't tell them.

humantraffic

my new employer is a small employer...think i will say to them that i wont hand in my notice till i get a unconditional job offer.

i think the sickness issue is a cause for concern, but with my manager saying that to me, I'm hoping she probalby give a standard reference for me cause i'm going.

humantraffic

update-

phoned new employer... who advised me to again to hand in notice and they will get references before I start, they wouldnt give me a unconditional job offer before i hand in my notice.

Evilm

Then you have to weigh up the options: Take the job and hope it isn't mentioned/isn't a problem or Not take the job.

KayJay

HT, don't do it. If the new employer doesn't give you the job, you are intentionally resigning from your old job. You could have problems getting another job and/or obtaining any benefits.

Googlewhacker

An unconditional offer is pretty pointless to be fair considering they have the power to dismiss you for practically any reason in the first two years of employment as long as its not for a protected characteristic.

At some point you will either need to solve the problems with your current employers or take the plunge and hope everything is ok.

As a point, they can't dismiss you if you are covered under the equality act but dismissing someone in the first two years for non discriminatory reasons wouldn't be to hard