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| Public Sector
July 29 2014

Toronto Police Criminal-Background Check Backlog Puts Thousands of Jobs and Studies in Limbo

"A ""catastrophic"" backlog in Toronto police background checks for students, health professionals and other workers could grow worse if the RCMP makes fingerprinting a mandatory part of the process. The Toronto Police Services Board is grappling with how to manage the 200 new requests for checks received each day, contributing to a backlog that peaked at almost 17,000 requests last year. Waiting times for a check can stretch for months. Last year, Toronto police received more than 108,000 requests for the two types of checks they provide: clearance letter and vulnerable sector screening (VSS). For employment fields that require a valid VSS issued within six months, some checks have expired by the time they are needed."