My employer has recently issued a new rule essentially saying that a professional reference letter will only be provided by HR and only upon resignation.
All other references from company employees if obtained are declared to be only personal references.
My question is - Can employer refuse providing you with a professional reference while you are still employed?
Next question - Can they refuse you a professional reference after you resigned?

Background: Potential employer only accepts references from your CP and DFO within last 5 years.

Never heard of complete refusal of a reference. I have heard of companies that don't do positive/negative references, they will only confirm your employment and factual information. Subjective things that are not fact based can open a can of worms in the hr world, no one wants a defamation lawsuit so it's easy to just say "yes we confirm he worked here and he came to all his shifts and was never late"

Have you tried talking to the CP directly, or is that who won't provide a reference? Not sure if the company would be obligated by any law to provide a reference. Maybe a record of employment but that wont get you very far. Good luck!

You can't make anyone do something they don't want.

Ask the CP to sign your logbook then.

Proof of employment.

I know an airline on the east coast is refusing to certify logbooks until you resign and are about to leave the property in an effort to f*** guys into staying.

Need your logbook certified for that fancy airline interview? Too bad, it's against company policy. I guess you'll have to stay here a while longer.

Thank you everyone for your replies.
I don't think I would still have a job if I deserved a negative reference.
However one of the reasons I want out is that company keeps coming up with more and more little ridiculous rules that make less and less sense.
For all I know once the rule is out, there is no point asking, it's a big no-no now.
Let's see how it goes. If I have to resign in order to get a reference - then I will resign.