wondering how many lie about being fired from a job?

njbride0603

I was a few years ago but I've always been up front about it...my friend told me she never told future employers she was fired from a previous job so now I'm wondering if I needed to be so honest!! just wondering how many people are or aren't honest about work history.....

bumpuser511563

I think some people don't say they were fired because they are afraid they will not be rehired elsewhere.

pitterpatter129

I haven't been fired, but unless it was a significant part of my job history (years there or very specific, needed training gained there), I don't think I would include it. I wouldn't outright lie, but maybe "omit" unless asked.

 

 

Kissty

Why were you fired?  That would make the difference to me..

Ya Never Know

While I haven't been fired, I did lie about the relationship I had with a previous employer to a potential employer, and I'm certain I didn't get the job because of it. I hated the owner of the company, which is why I left, and I didn't give two weeks notice. I had planned to, but the owner was being such a d-bag and treating me like crap that I decided not to give him the courtesy, since he certainly wasn't giving it to me. Anyway, I had started clearance for a new job, and I'm certain when they sent people out to talk to that boss, he told them that I just up and left. I should have been honest from the start and told the potential company why I left, but I was more worried that they would stop the hiring process there, when in reality, it would have helped me to be honest more than it would have hurt me.

Nechie122

I've never been fired, which I think implies for "cause," but if I were, I'd probably try to soften it with words like "laid off," which suggests it wasn't your fault but part of a downsizing or restructuring.

That said, many employers, and most large companies, will do a background check before hiring you. So it's better to be upfront. I almost failed a background check because my early employers knew me by my maiden name and my new company was asking about me using my married name. So it's not just a formality.

MirandaHobbes

My husband was "laid off" because his boss didn't like him. They even had reports that he wasn't doing his job well enough, and he was "written up" several times. But you can be "laid off" for not doing your job well. "Firing" means very specifically malfeasance. Like you intentionally stole something, failed to come in to work, etc.

Large companies will do an electronic background check. My husband got snared once with a small falsification. The background check merely contacted a company and asked them if DH had worked there from X - X time period. DH was off by a few months on his resume, and the background company caught that. They also checked his reason for leaving. DH had been TOLD by the company that he was laid off because they didn't have enough business to retain him (it was a law firm). But the background check revealed that the law firm said he was laid off because "he wasn't a good fit". We were pretty ticked, and I think what the law firm gave as a reason was borderline illegal. It gave a negative impression of him, when he was merely laid off. Fortunately he was hired regardless of the discrepency in his check, so we didn't pursue it.

Sorry, I digress- bottom line, I wouldn't lie about being laid off. It's not necessarily a bad thing. Look at it this way- someone could be laid off because you just can't do a job well enough. Like maybe I'm hired to install light bulbs, and for whatever reason, I'm just not good at my job. They let me go because I can't do it well enough.

CrawltheWarriorKing

MirandaHobbes:

My husband was "laid off" because his boss didn't like him. They even had reports that he wasn't doing his job well enough, and he was "written up" several times. But you can be "laid off" for not doing your job well. "Firing" means very specifically malfeasance. Like you intentionally stole something, failed to come in to work, etc.

Sorry, I digress- bottom line, I wouldn't lie about being laid off. It's not necessarily a bad thing. Look at it this way- someone could be laid off because you just can't do a job well enough. Like maybe I'm hired to install light bulbs, and for whatever reason, I'm just not good at my job. They let me go because I can't do it well enough.

Sorry but you're incorrect.  Firing means you were terminated for performance issues, whether it's as simple as coming in late too much, not doing your job well, or something bigger like harassment or stealing.  You are laid off when they do not have work for you, whether it's downsizing or department changes or just simply not enough work. 

If an employer fires you, they SHOULD go through the process of giving you verbal warnings, written warnings, performance improvement plans or 90 day probation periods but depending on the state you live in, they don't HAVE to. 

It's becoming more common for employers to not comment on whether or not the employee was fired.  They will probably just not comment at all.  We can give the dates of hire and last day plus position title and that's it.  Nothing else.

Like others have said, why you were fired would make a difference.

sugarbear0524

My DH was "let go" last week. He was on time every day, met all his deadlines, got very little (but all positive) feedback, and worked late every night with few exceptions. He also worked remotely on weekends at times. He had never been written up and had nothing but positive feedback on his performance.

We thought everything was great. He thought he was going into a regular meeting, instead thy dropped the bomb on him. Totally out of the blue. He was absolutely floored. They gave him some BS about "not being a good fit". So, how is working late, meeting deadlines, and getting along with everyone "not a good fit"? 

We found out later through a friend who was also a co-worker that my DH's boss was just the messenger. He said that letting DH go was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do.

How do you explain this to a future employer when you don't understand it yourself? 

laurakaz13

I've never been fired, but my whole department was laid off about 10 years ago in a previous job.  I never mention it, but it was so long ago and in a different field than I'm in now. 

Plus, being fired for cause and laid off are two totally separate things. 

KathrynMD

being fired vs. being laid off are very different.

I was fired once after ~4 days at a job.  I just don't list on my resume.

If someone was fired from a significant job, they would need to include it on their resume.  I don't think you need to volunteer to tell prospective employers you were fired, but I certainly wouldn't lie about it if it comes up.

salt78

I've never been fired, but I guess I would depend on a couple things. Mainly why I was fired and how long I held the previous job.

If I had been at the job a very long time and was fired, I would probably be honest about it especially if there was someone at that job that I would want to use as a professional reference. If it was a short term thing, I probably just wouldn't list it on my resume at all. 

I have been laid off which I know is a different thing entirely, but I don't list it as a specific thing on my resume because I was only there for a very short time. I just include the things that that I did there as part of my freelance. 

nosoup4u

I was fired from my first job because of political issues (one of my co-workers got fired 30 minutes after I was, and there had been weird work drama with management before). Luckily I was looking for a new job anyway, and had a job offer within a few weeks of being fired. I had the interview before I got fired, so it didn't come up, other than the fact I was looking to leave.

Anyhoo, I've never disclosed that I was fired, but no one has asked specifics and it was 10 years ago at this point. I have marked "no" when asked on applications, though! Probably not good...

KathrynMD

sugarbear0524:

My DH was "let go" last week. He was on time every day, met all his deadlines, got very little (but all positive) feedback, and worked late every night with few exceptions. He also worked remotely on weekends at times. He had never been written up and had nothing but positive feedback on his performance.

We thought everything was great. He thought he was going into a regular meeting, instead thy dropped the bomb on him. Totally out of the blue. He was absolutely floored. They gave him some BS about "not being a good fit". So, how is working late, meeting deadlines, and getting along with everyone "not a good fit"? 

We found out later through a friend who was also a co-worker that my DH's boss was just the messenger. He said that letting DH go was the hardest thing he'd ever had to do.

How do you explain this to a future employer when you don't understand it yourself? 

Weird *** happens at jobs sometimes - everybody knows that. If it comes up in the future, your DH just lays out what happened - he worked hard, met his deadlines, etc., etc. and out of the blue was let go and never got a good explanation.

ChicagoWeded2007

No need to tell unless you are asked if you were fired or why the job ended.