If on an application you check or write - please don't contact my employer, and you are still working there, that sends a message that you are doing a confidential search and don't want your current employer knowing you are looking for a job. If they are giving you no hours but keeping you on the schedule, the question becomes: Why?

If you can't get hours and want to look for another job, then you should tell the manager that you are looking because you aren't being scheduled, and hope that they will be supportive of your search when they are called for a reference. You will likely hear - "We don't give references we only verify your dates of employment" or something similar. So the next thing you need is a reference from that company - someone who will talk about your work performance. So if you have a supervisor, manager or lead who you work with who would be willing to say that they would work with you again then go for that angle. It would be a personal/work reference but would be helpful.

If you have left the company and don't allow them to contact your former employer, it sends a message that there was a problem and you need to address it professionally. It might sound something like, "I prefer not to use Company X as a reference due to the circumstances that led me to leave.. While I did the best job possible the situation wasn't conducive to me staying on." If they probe into this, then you don't want to throw people under the proverbial bus so it gets tricky. You might say something like, "there was a lot of petty fighting that made it difficult to focus on work. In the end I couldn't change it for the better so I want to find a better place for me to work."

And lastly, if you haven't worked for the restaurant for a long period of time, consider leaving it completely off your application and explaining the break in employment as personal time with your family.

In general, this raises flags for HR people. It suggests that you have something to hide. Put yourself in the position of a potential employer. If you have two similar candidates, one says it's fine to collect references, the other says they don't want you to, which would you go for?

I would recommend NOT doing so.

There are legitimate reasons to do so, it's why the option is there, but normally these are limited to positions you have been head-hunted for, or positions where, for example, you are moving from a high-level position to a direct competitor, and you don't want your current employers to know until the deal is done.

However, if you are worried about being discriminated against because you are seeking alternate employment, don't be.

If your current employer were to fire you, or make your work harder because you have looked for another position, it is illegal to do so, and you would have a legitimate case for unfair dismissal or discrimination.

Similarly, including dishonest information in a reference is also illegal. In most countries, you are entitled to request a copy of the reference from the company who the reference was provided to (in the UK this is done under the data protection act). If there is evidence that the information given is false, you would have a legitimate case for compensation, so it is highly unlikely that your employer would do so "Just to spite you". In general, references are limited to confirming that you did in-fact work for them for the periods you have listed, and anything that is factual, such as timekeeping ability (if backed up by clock cards etc.) and if you were regularly absent (again, only if backed up by verifiable records) but even this is unlikely.

Even a legitimately "negative" reference letter will not go out of it's way to make you look bad, it will be negative only by it's lack of positive information.

I would tell your current boss that you are looking for alternate work because you are not getting enough hours. State, quite clearly, that you enjoy your job here (whether you do or not) and you are not looking to move because of any reason but your hours (whether it is true or not).

Tell your boss that you will happily continue to work for them, if they are able to increase your regular hours, but that you understand that the world has changed recently, and they may not be in a financial position to do so. Tell him (or her) how much you have appreciated the opportunities they have given you so far, and that you will continue to work for them to the best of your ability while you are seeking additional employment.

State that finding another job doesn't necessarily mean you will leave them, if the hours appear to be compatible, you would love the opportunity to continue working with them.

Be unrelentingly positive, and give them a lot of possibilities to offer you more hours. Complement them often (doing so will make it a lot more difficult to be horrible to you later), and make sure you are very clear that you do not hold a grudge that they have reduced your hours (it could well be that they like you a lot, personally, but the current economic climate means that they have had to make a lot of hard decisions) and you understand how difficult it must be for them.

Then go about your job brilliantly. Be the first one there, and the last one home. Always be smart, smiling etc. Volunteer for EVERYTHING that comes your way, take the horrible shifts, cleaning tables, and everything that no-one else wants to do. Be the sort of person they want to give extra shifts to, and hopefully things will improve for you.