Q: Another reference question: my company refuses to let editors give references to reporters. The policy is vague (perhaps something legal, perhaps they just want to make it harder to leave) but I can't really explore the reasons without making it obvious I'm looking.

This is my first job, but I've been out of school for too long to use professors and I really wouldn't want to anyway. But of course, any company I head to will be expecting some references.

Any advice?

Anonymous

A: Some companies have policies that say they can do no more than confirm dates of employment. This may provide maximum protection for the newspaper, but it affords no help to the industry or to workers.

There are a few ways to get around it. The cleanest is to offer a copy of a positive evaluation, if you have one, in place of a reference. If it is OK with your editors that you look for a job in the first place, you can ask for a letter of recommendation. While that may violate the spirit of a ban on references, it might fly. A third avenue may be to offer the newspaper a letter in which you waive your right to sue.

In any case, this policy will hardly sound strange to potential new employers. Sometimes, the same newspapers that instruct their editors not to give references tell them to check them. Smart editors can often get the right signs from an editor who has been instructed to say nothing. Yes, the same newspapers that instruct their editors not to give references tell them to check them.

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