Yes, I call the # and say something along the lines of "I'm calling for Jeff please". When the person who answered the phone says "sorry, he's not in today" or he's in a meeting, or whatever, I say thank you and hang up. Then I forget the number and get rid of it. I'm not interested in keeping information on you. I'm simply interested in verifying that you have a job, and its not the sort of job that is likely to cause me to wind up wearing silver bracelets when I meet you. Nothing more than that.

As to how safe the information is with a provider - go with a lady who has a well established reputation, and you should have no cause for concern. She would not have the reputation she has established if she were not discrete, and you are not worth destroying that reputation over.

Calling your employer is just one of the many things that a provider might have at her disposal to use to gain a level of confidence that will give her enough confidence in your character to set up an appointment to meet you. There are many other things that can also be done. There are also many avenues to gain a level of confidence.

Below is a recent post that I made when the discussion of "questioning employment& what provider's might be asking for" arose (Why- from a provider's point of view Posted by Tori Of Atlanta, 5/10/2006 1:14:35 PM)  
"...There are a few reasons why a provider might ask for your employment:
As you stated possibly to get an understanding that you are indeed in a position to afford her time.... Possibly to have a contact other than your home, should you decide to greet her with a hammer instead of the usual suggested donation...
Possibly to help her establish a more confident level of comfort before she agrees to meet with you.... I mean, if a guy slaughters pigs as a lively hood, I am not necessarily going to deny seeing him but I might try to get a few more details about his activities in his leisure time!
Perhaps you might want to consider this..... you are not confident enough in the provider that you are seeing to divulge your employer ... but you are going to plan on getting intimate with her..??
Sometimes it is frightening to hear of a hobbyist who is more concerned with where he parks his car than where he parks his dick... sorry to sound harsh but gentlemen please don't forget your priorities.
This isn't a dress rehearsal, you are living in the real world! The level to which a provider protects her own safety is more than likely in direct proportion to the level in which she will protect you.

Happy Hobbying (*and know your provider's reputation*)... kisses ~Tori ......"

**Just so that you know, this topic has been discussed numerous times and you can get more detailed comments by using the search tab and typing in the words that you are seeking information about next to the box marked "search for":  if you search 100 days you should get plenty of additional information, this is a great tool TER has**