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<p>Yup. It definitely violates state (California) and likely federal privacy laws. The only way that my company can release any salary information is if the former employee signs a waiver/gives permission. That is true for all of those pesky refinance applications as well.</p>
<p>I didn’t focus on the “without you knowing.” That makes sense. But if you don’t authorize them to ask, I imagine they don’t have to hire you.</p>
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That may be true, but every job application I’ve ever filled out contains such a waiver. You want the job, you waive the privacy rights. You want the refinancing, you allow them to verify your information. </p>
<p>(Just like all those pesky Terms of Service we always accept on a website but never read.)</p>
<p>^^Which is exactly what I said in the second sentence, Chedva. </p>
<p>Note, the original post never mentioned anything about job applications.</p>
<p>bluebayou, first to read the question correctly!</p>
<p>bluebayou, </p>
<p>Let’s say that I sign the waiver, what is the next step? What do they do to find the info besides just calling up the company?</p>
<p>Wealthy business owners in an area generally all know each other, along with CEOs, politicians, associated college deans, etc. Power is tribal.</p>
<p>You might as well assume that everything about you will be discussed but not written down. Personnel departments within large companies are more likely to follow the laws. My wife does the hiring and firing for her company. She is surprised by the detailed sharing of prior employers.</p>
<p>On the bright side, I think execs are more likely to violate their company’s prohibition on references if they have something good to say than if they have something bad to say. They know they can’t really get in any trouble for saying something good.</p>
<p>If you authorized your prior company to release your salary information to the new company (via the application form, or some subsequent form that you have to sign as a condition of the job offer), then your prior company can release the info. They will probably not ask your prior company until you have started with the new company. If the information is materially different, then the new company can terminate you for lying on your application.</p>
<p>I doubt many companies have problems releasing salary information. They do it all the time when you are applying for a loan. What a company may refuse to release, except directly to you, is all the rest of the stuff in your file, like performance reviews, etc. That is subjective, and easy for the employee to sue the company (winning is a different issue - they just want to avoid the litigatino).</p>
<p>Hmm interesting. </p>
<p>I know of some people who use other wealthy business owners as references despite the fact that they never worked for them.</p>
<p>For example, I know someone who uses his uncle as a reference for a job that he never did and his uncle(company owner) actually lies to the people calling about his nephew.</p>
<p>I don’t get how this would work though. Wouldn’t a simple SSN check disprove them?</p>