Background screening refers to the process of researching and gathering information about an individual's history, often to make informed decisions about their suitability for employment, tenancy, financial transactions, or other situations where trust and reliability are essential. Background screening aims to verify and assess an individual's qualifications, character, and past behaviour, helping organizations and individuals make more informed and risk-conscious decisions.

Employers have a duty to check the backgrounds of prospective employees for the sake of shareholders, fellow employees, and customers. A thorough background check can save an organization an enormous amount of grief and expense down the road. Hire Performance’s services accelerate the recruiting process and dramatically improve the quality of background information necessary to make well-informed hiring decisions. These benefits will significantly reduce expenses associated with turnover and re-training - not to mention the damage that a 'bad hire' can inflict on the company and its customers.

Typically, background screening involves checking various aspects of an individual's background, which may include one or more of the following service types:

• Criminal Record Check: Checking for any local, national, or international criminal records or convictions.
• Credit Check: Assessing an individual's financial responsibility and creditworthiness by reviewing their credit history on their credit report.
• Driver’s Abstract: Reviewing a summary of a person's driving record, providing information about their driving history, license status, violations, and other relevant details.
• Employment Verification: Verifying the accuracy of an individual's work experience, including past employers, job titles, and employment dates.
• Education Verification: Confirming an individual's educational background, including degrees and diplomas.
• Credential Verification: Verifying any professional licenses or certifications claimed by the individual.
• National Security Search: Examining an individual's background for any potential national security concerns, including checks against government databases and security watchlists.
• Reference Checks: Contacting previous employers, colleagues, or personal references to gather insights into an individual's character and work habits.
• Exit Interviews: Gathering feedback from departing employees on their experiences, reasons for leaving, and suggestions for organizational improvement.

The turnaround time depends on the service being requested. For example, at Hire Performance, Canadian Criminal Record Checks, Credit Checks, Ontario Driver’s Abstracts, and many Education Verification requests are returned within one to two business hours. Other services, such as References and Employment Verification requests, can take longer, but we complete our due diligence by reaching out daily and keeping you updated on the status of each service.

Yes, background checks are legal, but they must be conducted in compliance with relevant laws and regulations governing privacy and employment practices. In many countries, including Canada, the United States, and others, specific laws dictate how background checks can be performed, what information can be obtained, and how many years of history can be reviewed. Employers and background screening companies need to adhere to these laws, such as the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) in Canada or the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) in the U.S., to protect individuals' rights and privacy during the screening process. You can read more about this here.

Hire Performance does not offer background screening services to individuals, only to companies that are hiring.

The cost of a background check varies depending on the service(s) run. You can learn more about Hire Performance’s pricing here.

Yes, we work closely with our Clients to ensure the price is right. You will be connected with an Account Manager to review your background screening needs and line up the required services with the most cost-effective solutions.

Yes, we take pride in our commitment to working closely with each Client to customize packages.

At Hire Performance, you can count on speaking with a live person and receiving a response promptly via chat, email, and telephone.

Third-party searches have the potential to turn up information that may have been missed, and they can also expand on the information you have already developed. Corroboration of your investigative results is also of significant value as it provides your HR department with security in knowing that a Candidate has been thoroughly investigated by your office and third-party experts. Additionally, such due diligence practices are valuable should your hire be under future review.

As a rule, Hire Performance prefers not to contact Candidates in order to maintain complete neutrality when evaluating a Candidate. However, upon the Client's request and authorization, Hire Performance can contact the Candidate to request additional information for a fee. Please note that our paperless platform, known as the eScreener, essentially eliminates the possibility of missing Candidate information.

Yes, we take pride in our commitment to working closely with each Client to customize packages.

Many Clients like to order reports in the final selection stage when interviews and/or testing have narrowed the number of Candidates to three or four. However, Clients are reminded that ordering a Criminal Record Check and obtaining driver's license numbers directly from the employee requires a conditional offer of employment first. Many of our clients order pre-employment reports on Candidates they have short-listed and then have us do the criminal record and driver record searches on their final chosen Candidate afterward.

Yes, Hire Performance regularly confirms information outside Canada. Note that response time and success vary depending on the geographical location involved.

Yes, the Consumer Reporting Acts and PIPEDA indicate that a credit check may be obtained for employment purposes. The employer or prospective employer must first advise the individual verbally or in writing of their intention to obtain information from the credit bureau.

Credit checks allow employers to view a Candidate's ability to handle their own affairs. This speaks to character issues of responsibility and management capabilities. Finding that a Candidate is under financial strain and has collection agencies seeking payment and possible garnishment may be helpful in the final selection process. A Candidate with this type of history may be more likely to 'hop' from one job to another to avoid collection agencies and may be at a higher risk for theft. Credit checks also highlight employment history and may indicate another employer that the Candidate deliberately left off their resume or application, something well worth investigating.

Small companies have the potential to be even more impacted by a bad hire, as the high costs of training, turnover, theft, and the negative impact on the existing staff can have a serious effect on the bottom line. In comparison, the costs of thoroughly investigating a Candidate before hiring are minimal.

Yes, a criminal record check may be ordered on an existing or prospective employee when a consent form is signed. In the case of a prospective employee, a criminal record search may be conducted only when a conditional offer of employment is made. Please note that an employer may not, at any time, ask an employee or prospective employee if they have a 'criminal record.' An employer may pose the question in a manner which does not invite information on pardoned offences. An appropriate example is: "Have you ever been convicted of a crime for which you have not been pardoned?"

Discrimination based on criminal record is not a Human Rights violation in most provinces unless the person has received an official pardon for the crime. Please refer to the Human Rights Commission website for detailed and specific Human Rights information.

Yes. According to the Human Rights Commission, you may investigate a current employee. If a consent form was not signed previously, asking the employee to sign one is not a violation of the Human Rights Code.

Hire Performance has a paperless platform, the eScreener, on which you can easily initiate, track, and complete background checks on any device or browser.

Yes, we have a feature known as Offices, where you can easily organize your background checks and invoices per location.

A credit inquiry from Hire Performance Inc. may show up on a Candidate's credit report due to regulatory requirements. Whenever a consumer's credit file is accessed, whether it's for pulling the file or verifying identity, Equifax is obligated to timestamp and document the inquiry, revealing who accessed the information.

This type of inquiry is known as a "soft inquiry." It's important to note that soft inquiries are only visible to the individual and do not affect their credit score in any way.

Equifax cannot remove the Hire Performance Inc. inquiry from the credit report because it is mandated by regulations to provide transparency to individuals regarding who accessed their personal information.