3 Ways Letters Of Reference Cause Problems For Employers

An employee is leaving and asks for a letter of reference. The employer, wanting to help out the departing employee, agrees to provide one. What can go wrong? Can't this good deed go unpunished? Actually, you should be fine, as long as you:

• Don't portray your benchwarmers as superstars. It's one thing to want to help someone move on. But if you blatantly misrepresent their skils, and they cause damage to the company that hires them, that company can sue you. You made a factual mistatement about this person's abilities, you knew or should have known that the statement was false, the recipient relied to their detriment, and they suffered damage. That's what we call fraud.
• Don't give your former employees evidence of pretext. A central issue in most wrongful termination cases is whether the employer had a legitimate basis for the decision. If you tell someone you're terminating them for performance problems, then give them a letter that says how great they are,