Is it reasonable to ask a potential employer if you could talk to a previous employee?

I wouldn’t do that back home but someone told me that is ok to ask here.
Would be really helpful to get perspective from a previous teacher but maybe it’s not appropriate. What do you all think?

Why ask? Should be easy to find out who the previous teacher was (ask a student if you can’t find out any other way). Then send him/her an email or LINE.

They won’t fire you for something like that and you don’t owe your employer an explanation for that either imo.

How would you go about finding out who the previous employees were without asking the school? (other than asking a student - sounds like a long shot and I wouldn’t do that anyways).
Is it culturally ok to ask the person interviewing you to speak with a former employee?

Surely you can track them on social media or something. Or just casually ask a coworker. You can even tell a white lie and say you want to ask them about what resources they used in their classroom.

Sounds not only reasonable but sensible, although I could picture, in Taiwan more than anywhere else, a reaction along the line of “NO! FORBIDDEN BY THE LAW! Why you wanna ask my last employees questions anyway? All my employees are happy! Everybody here is HAPPY! Now stop asking questions, sign the contract already!”

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Eh. The buxiban boss that i worked for lost his shit when I wanted a backup of all my old timecards. (A right i might add) I threatened him with a call to the labour board. He knew… he knew what i was up to…

If they got something to hide, they will try to prevent you from getting the opinions of former employees. The guy that was to replace me was forbidden to talk to me.

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If your prospective employer asks you for references, it’s only fair to reciprocate. :balance_scale: :slightly_smiling_face:

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Had an interview yesterday and the manager told me I could talk to a current employee when I come back for a demo. Would be helpful but I’m assuming it could be fabricated if I talk to a current employee that is looking out for the best interest of the company. Not sure if I’m going back anyways. Interviewer was 10 minutes late which is a big red flag.

I can think of bigger red flags, like shady business practices and evasive answers about pay and hours. People are late occasionally. Sometimes employers like to make applicants wait to make them sweat it out a bit. The guy being 10 minutes late isn’t a huge deal and I wouldn’t be fazed about it. If anything it means he’s not desperate for a hire, which means his school may not have that much turnover and the position may be a bit competitive.

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That’s what I also thought. As far as you know, the employee or ex-employee could be fake or having some sort of interest in it.

I don’t see why you can’t ask to speak to person you are replacing. I’ve done so here, and they gladly allowed me. I also found out via Linkedin who it was…detective skills. They were surprised I knew his name but no hesitation in me talking with him.
Go for it. And maybe try to talk outside of that work environment.

Employers ask for references so why shouldn’t you?

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Good call Linkedin is worth checking out, didn’t think of that.
I’ll start asking at interviews. If they hesitate or ask why that will tell me a lot right there just by their reaction. Thanks

Little unrelated but what about asking to sub before signing a contract?
Anyone ever done that? Seems like a good way to test the waters before pulling the trigger

You would need open work rights for that – otherwise it’s a work permit violation, and you can get deported for it.

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Okay thanks! Didn’t even think about that, I’ve never subbed anywhere.

Careful of taking any tutoring or subbing gigs.