Do job references matter?

工作推荐重要吗?

The Indicator from Planet Money

商务

2024-12-17

9 分钟
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In the not-so-distant past, serving as someone's job reference meant answering a few questions over the phone. Nowadays, that process is often more involved, with prospective employers asking references for written responses or to fill out a form online. What's behind this shift? On today's show, we check in on reference checks, and ask whether they still matter. Related episodes: Ghost jobs (Apple / Spotify) For sponsor-free episodes of The Indicator from Planet Money, subscribe to Planet Money+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Music by Drop Electric. Find us: TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Newsletter. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
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  • Npr.

  • If you've ever agreed to give an employee or a colleague a reference when they're applying for a job, you know the drill.

  • You hop on the phone or zoom, you answer a few questions.

  • And this used to be quick, maybe a couple of minutes.

  • But lately, if you agree to be a reference, odds are it's gonna take a lot longer.

  • And that's because now this kind of conversation that used to be a quick phone call, it's morphed into a written process.

  • There are multiple essay questions you have to answer about the candidate, forms you have to fill out.

  • You have to rank their skills using those little circles on a scale of 1 to 10.

  • I mean, we all wanna be helpful, right Darian?

  • Of course.

  • Especially for our good colleagues that we've worked with.

  • Of course.

  • But how did the burden switch to us?

  • We're like a third party.

  • Shouldn't the employer who's doing the hiring be the one who is doing the work?

  • Here?

  • This is unpaid labor.

  • That's pretty easy for me.

  • I just put 10 for everybody.

  • This is the indicator.