job application current employer

Roxyann57 · May 24, 2011

Most employers will contact your current job, mine did. They just asked my manager if he had any comments about me, he said nothing but great things. From what I understand though your current job can either say nice things or they can't comment at all.

TransplantRN3 · May 24, 2011

I agree that most employers will contact your current job before hiring you. Are you asking because your current employer does not know you are looking for another job? Good luck!

sourapril · May 24, 2011

If I am leaving a job that I have for 6 months but I have been a good employee do I say do not contact my employer or is it OK?

SummerGarden, BSN, MSN, RN · May 24, 2011

if i am leaving a job that i have for 6 months but i have been a good employee do i say do not contact my employer or is it ok?

yes, you can say "no" to contacting your current employer. this will not necessarily keep you from getting another job. i have done it for years and have gotten other jobs. i only had one employer ask me "why" during the interview and i informed them at that time.

smart employers understand that the obvious reason people do not want a current employer contacted is because he/she can lose his/her job for applying to another facility. also, interviews are a great way to weed out potential trouble and so are probationary periods. gl!

caliotter3 · May 24, 2011

Be aware that answering "no" to the contact question does not necessarily mean the prospective employers will not contact them. People have reported that contact was made despite their requests.

sourapril · May 24, 2011

so whether I put down yes or no to contact my current employer, there is a chance they will contact. So What's the best way to apply to a new job while maintaining a good relationship with your boss and not causing any drama?

caliotter3 · May 24, 2011

Either hope that nothing gets back to your current employer or be prepared to let them know. After all, if you accept a new job, you will have to inform them anyway. I would just go ahead, apply, check "no", and let the chips fall where they may.

noahsmama · May 24, 2011

I started looking for a new job 6 months into my first nursing job. When I filled out applications, I checked "no", do not contact my current employer, and, instead of providing my supervisor's name and phone number, either left those spaces blank or wrote "do not contact" in those spaces as well (harder to do with online applications, since sometimes those fields are required). If possible, I would also write a note stating that I did not want my current employer contacted until I had had a chance to inform them that I was looking for another job, and that I would do so if we got to a point in the interview process where they were interested enough in me to want to call my supervisor.

There's no way for me to know if there were any potential employers who decided not to call me because of that way of completing applications, but I can tell you that the ones that did contact me seemed very understanding. No one called my employer without my permission. When I finally did have a potential employer who was interested enough in me to want to speak to my current supervisor, I did go ahead and break the news to her (by then I had been working for her for 16 months). She agreed to serve as a reference and I guess she must have told them good things about me, because I got the new job.

Good luck!

sourapril · May 24, 2011

That's good to know, but by the time you got your new job you already had worked at your old job for more than a year. I am just worried that my time at my current position isn't long enough and potential employer might wondering how come I can't keep a job for more than 6 months.

noahsmama · May 24, 2011

That's good to know, but by the time you got your new job you already had worked at your old job for more than a year. I am just worried that my time at my current position isn't long enough and potential employer might wondering how come I can't keep a job for more than 6 months.

But if you're going to start looking now, your potential employer will know you've only had your current job for 6 months, whether you check "yes" or "no" in the box about contacting your current employer.

If you want to start looking anyway, then be prepared to explain to potential employers your reasons for seeking employment elsewhere, and be prepared to let your current employer know if you have to.

The point of my post was that you can start looking now and take steps that at least reduce, if not eliminate, the possibility that your current employer will find out about your job search before you're ready to tell them.

MrChicagoRN, RN · May 25, 2011

That's good to know, but by the time you got your new job you already had worked at your old job for more than a year. I am just worried that my time at my current position isn't long enough and potential employer might wondering how come I can't keep a job for more than 6 months.

Is it an issue of not keeping a job, or are you simply looking for a better job?

Noahsmama summed it up nicely.

I also decline them contacting my employer until it appears we're serious about each other.

FYI, of you DO say Ok, or use him/her for a reference, let him know ahead of time. It does strain relationships when a manager gets an unexpected call about a current employee.