Originally Posted by RB
First off, its illegal for your old employer to say anything bad about you. My mom is a vice president and hires a lot of people, and legally she can't say anything good or bad about old employees.
It is not unlawful to give a truthful reference. You need to be ready, willing and able to stand up for what you have said, however, in a court of common pleas.
The actual regulations and liabilities vary from state to state.
In Virginia, for example, if someone is a crook and you do NOT tell a potential employer about this, the new employer can hold you responsible and there could be a tort action in a court of common pleas because you did not perform your duty to society in giving a bad, but truthful reference.
Rock and a hard place.
People in personnel have a way of speaking to each other that gives things away. If a director said, "I cannot give you a reference for that person" then the person about whom the other director is calling will simply never be hired.