Hello Harry,

I think this may be a question worth asking EPSO whether and in what cases they would contact candidates' employers and also if they would inform a candidate about this (beforehand).

I have really never heard of an example where EPSO would contact a candidate's previous or current employer. I can only assume that they would resort to verifying this information in case of any substantial doubt. Usually, EPSO asks candidates at the latest stage of the competition for proof of previous employment, i.e. contract AND pay slip. Same applies to education and degrees.

Once you are on a reserve list and get hired, the respective HR services of your institution will also require this information, i.e. proof of previous employment and education/degrees. Maybe in the meantime, this process has been centralised between EPSO and HR services.

I know of cases where a hiring unit would ask for references of a candidate. In a few of these cases, the hiring unit would indeed contact these references. As an applicant, you may wish to indicate in your cover letter that you'd appreciate your application to be handled with discretion in case you do not wish HR services or the hiring unit to contact your current employer. But you may wish to indicate previous employers so that they could contact these references.