Is this legit (after firing)?

Absolutely! If I were in your shoes I'd ask him to go ahead and write a letter of recommendation now on company letterhead with contact information listed on it for him and for the company! And I would go ahead and provide that with a resume IF the company you're applying to allows it.

I wouldn't think the date would be a problem since it corresponds to your lay-off time anyway.

Hey Susan,

My opinion is that I would say 'No' to you asking for a reference at this moment for a number of reasons.

1) If you ask for a reference then this will make it easier for them to show you the door, as you are completing part of the departure task yourself through willingness.
2) If you are made redundant (which is not being sacked/fired) or the company go into receivership, they will still have the time and resources to write your reference.
3) If you get another job thats great, all parties will be happy and you'll still get a reference.

My little contribution. What area of work are you in, if you don't mind me asking ?

Rodders

rodar brings up some good points. it depends a lot on your relationship with your boss. if you know for almost certain they'll help you out (i.e., you are friends) then there's not much risk getting your recommendation now. but if you have only a casual relationship with them, and your knowledge of the company's financial situation is based more in rumor than fact, then you could be jumping the gun and showing your hand.

unfortunate that you have to think of things that way but that is how it is in most places. i would keep the references on your resume until the company actually folds. then you can replace your boss's work info with their personal contact info if they are genuinely going to help you. be up front with your perspective employer during the interviews and you shouldn't have a problem.

remember that you are the little guy. companies can liquidate and the officers can typically start over somewhere else. you don't need to do them any favors.

Susan, ask away! Just ask him/her to not date the letter. No problems then.

Susan, it's the old office politics and without anyone knowing how where you work is tricky to say. I would look for work elsewhere IF there is a hint they might be laying off more people. It's tricky in this climate which ever country your in. Also the person saying that to you could be testing the water, to see your reaction, again that depends on if they are genuine or there is an ulterior motive.

I would perhaps take some middle ground.as jack said about getting even a none work related email address from the person. So your not asking them for a reference, just to keep in touch.

Rodders make some very good points.. but maybe employment law differs a tad from us in the uk in ways I guess.

being fired and being made redundant are 2 very different things though, so it's confusing you mention both.

if you are on contract work , then well a contract is a contract for a set period of time etc.

Susan,

Gosh to be FIRED-------whew------but if you were on good terms with your supervisor I see no reason why he/she would not give you a good recommendation----but then on the other hand they can be good to your face and then stab you in the back. Hope you did not do anything wrong because that can follow you on to your next job if your supervisor knows why---------

How long were you at this place of employment?? (if you dont mind my asking)

Hang in there

Just to echo the comments, I am sorry to hear you have been let go Susan

Hi-

Thanks, all! [For some reason, I'm not getting e-mails from this thread, even though I'm subscribed, which is why I'm late in responding.]

No, I didn't do anything wrong. This was a wide-spread "letting go" of more than two-thirds of the employee base due to poor sales figures. It's a POS ("Point-of-Sale", not the other obvious acronym translation, though some might dispute that!) software company, and with the current state of the US economy, small businesses and restaurants have been failing at an alarming rate. Understandably, the last thing on their minds is a new hardware/software purchase.

I was there for about 2-1/2 years, and there's no HR department. I haven't yet, but I'll go ahead and ask my supervisor for a letter.

Thanks again-

-Susan

ORIGINAL: Susan G
[For some reason, I'm not getting e-mails from this thread, even though I'm subscribed, which is why I'm late in responding.]

welcome to the new and improved coffee house. no religion, politics or subscriptions (after all, what else is there to talk about?)

No, I didn't do anything wrong. This was a wide-spread "letting go" of more than two-thirds of the employee base due to poor sales figures. It's a POS ("Point-of-Sale", not the other obvious acronym translation, though some might dispute that!) software company, and with the current state of the US economy, small businesses and restaurants have been failing at an alarming rate. Understandably, the last thing on their minds is a new hardware/software purchase.

I was there for about 2-1/2 years, and there's no HR department. I haven't yet, but I'll go ahead and ask my supervisor for a letter.

sorry to hear you were let go. keep in touch with your supervisor as you look for new work in case they are also let go, so you can update their contact info.

So pamper yourself for a couple of days. Really!

+1

Just remember a few of those things that you wished you were able to spend time doing all the time you were devoting yourself to yer duties. And do 'em!!!

Well, here's my [tentative] request. Is the tone too mild/aggressive/what? Never done this before!

[I hope you're doing well, blah, blah...]
I'd very much appreciate a letter of recommendation when you have a minute. It doesn't have to be anything fancy, of course, just a brief note I can present to prospective employers.

Thanks-

-Susan

I'm a little late to the thread, and it looks like it's been covered but I thought I'd add...

My company's been through 2 big layoffs in the past 5 years or so. Each time, managers bent over backwards to write letters of recommendation, get portfolio pieces together and help in people-networking/job-hunting. So it is most certainly legit to ask for a letter of recommendation from a former manager. Also, my wife was laid off last year and her manager gave her a good letter of recommendation.

Now, the official policy of my company's HR dept. is that we can only say "yes, the person worked here for such and such dates" and not say anything about performance. But it's not enforced. I really loved working with the people who got laid off, and I'm most definitely going to talk them up if someone calls for a reference.