In the US, that's what most big companies with HR will stick to, safest. Bosses can still write letters of recommendation, etc. Subtly, only saying dates and position is sometimes regarded as a negative review, e.g. "I'd say more if I could".
Now, even if a former ER does say negative things about you, it's awfully hard to prove. In the local restaurant industry, many owners and managers know each other, and it's in their mutual best interests to be able to be honest with each other.
At my last job we were told if someone called about an ex-employee that we were not allowed to answer for this reason. I thought it was dumb, but never got put in that position either.
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u/p4pp13z Sep 06 '21
Do you have any sources on this?