In March 2011, a new US Government report claimed that over 90% of all American nursing homes hire criminals. The study surveyed 260 nursing homes across America at the start of 2009, and found that 92% had at least one employee with a criminal conviction.
The investigating commission also found that “nearly half of the nursing homes surveyed had more than 5 employees with criminal convictions.” The employees with criminal records had been convicted of such crimes as burglary, shoplifting, and writing bad checks.
March 2011 also offered positive news, as BackCheck partnered with Canada Post to help candidates across the country submit their background checks in a faster and more convenient fashion. Using an innovative process, BackCheck’s partnership with Canada Post has bolstered the accessibility of background checks, allowing anyone anywhere in Canada to submit their information for a background check at their local post office.
Traditionally, job candidates were required to present themselves to a hiring manager for identity verification, causing needless scheduling problems and delays in the hiring process. However, with BackCheck’s new partnership with Canada Post, candidates now have the option of printing out an application at home and having their identification verified by Canada Post, which is convenient for industries relying on remote hires.
In May 2011, BackCheck discovered a company that provided fake reference interviews, acting as a fake previous employer for job candidates. BackCheck staff caught the company in the act of providing a false interview in the following video.
In June 2011, a Williamson County woman was accused of stealing $46,000 from a local charity. She had been prosecuted for two theft convictions before being hired, but the non-profit didn't look at her criminal record until she was already employed and suspected of misappropriating funds.
In September 2011, a prospective high school volleyball coach attempted to forge a criminal record check. First, he sent an email to the school in question, his prospective employer, pretending to be an FBI agent and providing a clean criminal record check. Soon after, he typed up a letter, also claiming to be from the FBI, which claimed that he did not have a criminal record. While the school confirms the amateur nature of this man’s attempts at forgery and impersonation, the story highlights some of the risks related to paper-based criminal record checks and pre-employment screening. While the prospective high school volleyball coach simply printed off a fake letter and sent a fraudulent email, technology affords much more complex and convincing methods for falsifying documentation. BackCheck’s online delivery of criminal record check results minimizes the risk of forgery.
In October 2011, a civil servant in British Columbia was discovered to have a criminal record under a previous identity. Richard Wainwright was hired by the BC government in 2007 after having changed his last name to his wife’s maiden name. After having documentation, including university degrees, a health card and a Social Insurance Number reissued for his new name, Wainwright completed a criminal record check directly through the RCMP, using his new name and identification. The check did not reveal Wainwright’s previous convictions for counterfeiting and fraud and he was subsequently hired by the BC government. His previous identity could have been discovered using BackCheck’s Identity Cross-Check service.
In December 2011, Joel Barlow, a public servant in Australia was charged with defrauding a national health authority out of $AUS 11 million. Barlow, originally from New Zealand, had previous charges of fraud against him in his home country, which could have been revealed using an International Criminal Record Check.
