References 25 June 2022 at 5:36PM in Employment, jobseeking & training 23 replies 481 views

Ath_Wat

MovingForwards said:

@Ath_Wat
NHS, education, councils etc say the offers are conditional. Some take up references before interview, some after and it's a case of waiting for the start date. When that's received it generally means everything has come through and is ok.
.

So they ask for references before confirming a start date?  How do people who are not currently working in the public sector generally deal with this?  Most private sector employers are not going to sit around waiting after they have received a reference request to see whether you are going to go or not.

MovingForwards

@Ath_Wat they obtain everything eg references, PVG / CRB, do occ health questionnaire/ referral etc. It can take upto 3 months from conditional offer to start date.

A previous PS I worked for took up references before interview. I was offered the role and started a few days later. This particular place goes for the person able to start the quickest, which isn't always a good thing.

I know two people working for the particular PS I've had a conditional offer from. One has been in it for years, but prewarned me it's a slow recruitment process. The other wasn't working at the time of receiving a conditional offer and applied for other roles; I saw how long theirs took to go from conditional to start. Even during my interview, and subsequent conditional offer, they told me it takes ages to start. This one takes on the person most suited to the role.

Had a reference request gone to my employer I would have lost my job or things become even more unbearable and I would have walked out.

I resigned without an unconditional offer for the public sector role, as it fits what I've got lined up for the in-between period, is a stepping stone back into what I want to do and I've a good reason for doing so. However, I have money in the bank, can walk into a temp role within a few days and apply for permanent positions that are aligned with long-term aims. 

I've seen the risk, assessed the risk, balanced the risk and have a back up plan. Until the threads pop up, we don't get to see how others do it.

Ath_Wat

MovingForwards said:

@Ath_Wat they obtain everything eg references, PVG / CRB, do occ health questionnaire/ referral etc. It can take upto 3 months from conditional offer to start date.

A previous PS I worked for took up references before interview. I was offered the role and started a few days later. This particular place goes for the person able to start the quickest, which isn't always a good thing.

I know two people working for the particular PS I've had a conditional offer from. One has been in it for years, but prewarned me it's a slow recruitment process. The other wasn't working at the time of receiving a conditional offer and applied for other roles; I saw how long theirs took to go from conditional to start. Even during my interview, and subsequent conditional offer, they told me it takes ages to start. This one takes on the person most suited to the role.

Had a reference request gone to my employer I would have lost my job or things become even more unbearable and I would have walked out.

I resigned without an unconditional offer for the public sector role, as it fits what I've got lined up for the in-between period, is a stepping stone back into what I want to do and I've a good reason for doing so. However, I have money in the bank, can walk into a temp role within a few days and apply for permanent positions that are aligned with long-term aims. 

I've seen the risk, assessed the risk, balanced the risk and have a back up plan. Until the threads pop up, we don't get to see how others do it.

This must be an extremely common problem though, for everyone applying for NHS jobs who has a current non NHS employer.  You'd think they would have realised it and come up with a system that doesn't involve contacting people's current employer before setting start dates.  Everyone else manages it.