Legal Question in Employment Law in Virginia
Employment references
Is there a law regarding what a former employer can and cannot say regarding a former employee in a employment reference with a prospective employer? If there is such a law where can I find it. My son was recently let go from his job and he gave his former employer as a reference. His former employer gave him a really bad reference and made statements such as he was a drug addict, drunk, etc.
His former employer is upset with him and is doing this as revenge. He had worked for him for ten years except for a two year period when he quit and worked somewhere else. His former employer hired him back at that time. If he is supposedly that bad why did he hire him back and keep him employed that long! We do not want to take any legal action against him but would like to let him know that he could get in trouble for his actions and should not repeat them in the future against any former employee.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Employment references
The law that applies to this situation is the law of defamation(libel and slander). Employers are increasingly reluctant to give but only the most cursory references on former employees due to the fact that such employers are increasingly being sued by their former employees for giving out adverse references that are less than factually based.
Whether or not your son might also have a viable cause of action for defamation against his former employer, at this point, of course, I couldn't say for certain, but, based upon your description of matters, it would appear that there is at least that possibility.
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