Historically, job references have been a fundamental part of the recruitment process. From the employee’s perspective, a good reference from his/her current or former employer has been almost essential in getting a job. It has also been just as important to prospective employers who want to know that the employee is competent, honest, trustworthy and generally worth hiring. However, this importance has put the employer giving the reference in an influential position and the law has responded by seeking to impose parameters on what can be said. It may be that these developments in the law mean the job reference is about to be consigned to history.
The recent Court of Appeal decision in Cox v Sun Alliance Life Ltd [2001] IRLR 448 expands the employer’s duty to use skill and care in providing references. To understand it properly, it is important to recognise its genesis.
