Just some helpful hints for you job seekers out there.
 

My company is reducing the sales force by 27%. We find out who's out on Feb.1st.

Thanks for this but I hope I don't need it.

Thanks
 

Some good advice there, my wife sitting at home thanks to being laid off mid October. Despite going for numerous interviews and 4 agencies putting her cv forward for opportunities, nada. And no answer as to why etc etc.

Here in the U.S. most companies won't tell you why you weren't hired because they're afraid of getting sued. When I was a High School Administrator (many moons ago...) we were not allowed to tell teachers why they weren't offered contracts from year to year (those that were untenured.) It does no one any good to not know how to address a deficiency in a certain skill set.
I wonder if it would be possible to sign a "no litigation" contract with prospective employers so they would not be afraid to tell the truth?

Where we stay, it's also about who will do the same job for the least salary.
Ultimately it's self-defeating for the company because they end up with some asshole who can't do the job properly and then end up with a scenario of having to find a replacement every few months when the person they employed either leaves or is terminated before the probation period runs out.
While there isn't really a culture of being sued, some companies feel they may be seen as discriminatory if they honestly reveal why they did not hire someone.
When asked, some companies make up a BS excuse, which as you say doesn't do the applicants any good at all.
And so, we battle on, interview after interview.

This is the truth

There are companies that will check your referral for you, so you know what they are saying about you.

Hmmm, interesting. I have never heard of that here in this country, may be worthwhile exploring seeing as recruitment agencies also are hesitant to give you the info of what referral is given.