legal words
Providing References
WORDS OF WARNING
By Ruben R. Goulart and Sreya Roy
Providing a reference to a past or present employee is often
a balancing act. On one hand, providing a reference or rec-ommendation
can significantly assist a departing employee
in their search for new employment, as the employer ben-efits
from the past employee’s mitigation efforts. Further, in
wrongful dismissal actions, a court may award additional damages
against an employer if it finds that the employer refused to provide
a reference to an employee deserving of one.
On the other hand, providing a reference for a departing em-ployee
could expose an employer to significant risks. There is a
risk that the employer could face a negligent misrepresentation
lawsuit from a subsequent employer, who relied on an inaccurate,
incomplete or false reference. Another growing concern is that by
providing a reference, the employer may be exposed to defamation
lawsuits by the departing employee.
In the recent case of Papp v. Stokes et al, 2017 ONSC 2357
(CanLII), Adam Papp brought a lawsuit against his former em-ployer,
alleging wrongful dismissal and defamation. Papp was
terminated without cause and asked his former boss if he could
use him as a reference. A few months later, a potential employer
advised Papp that he was the first-ranked candidate for a posi-tion,
but that a reference check was still required. During the
reference check, the former employer indicated to the potential
employer that Papp did not get along well with his supervisors or
Bacho/Shutterstock.com
HRPROFESSIONALNOW.CA ❚ JUNE 2017 ❚ 13