It's just something I've gotten to think about recently. How many of us have put up with unnecessary crap, given a bunch of notice we didn't want to when being mistreated and swallowed nonsense because our CURRENT asshole employer has so much sway over our FUTURE employment prospects?
Requiring references from previous employers ties the hands of working class folk from have actual mobility and portability of their employment. Employers, as a class, have largely made the decision that, not only to they themselves want to determine if you're hireable but also give veto power to functionally blacklist workers to any of your previous employers. Especially if they require a reference from the manager at your last job, which isn't uncommon. What if they discriminated against you or harassed you, which is why you left?
It's actually pretty crazy when you get down and think about the astounding amount of culturally accepted class solidarity employers have. And we just roll over and accept it because: what choice do we have?
Employers don't need references to start a business, and I do like the idea of asking in an interview (essentially) reference questions of their current employees. Want references about me? Great. What do your employees like about working here? Why did your last three people leave the company? And so on and so forth.
Cultural change comes one conversation at a time, but I think we, collectively, need to start having them.