Are you Job Ready? Can a National Police Check Make you Job Ready?

As we welcome in 2017, there are many folks who are looking forward to a better year and a better economy. Long past are the days of the so called "two speed economy"...particularly in Western Australia where a combination of the mining and oil & gas industries helped to transform the state (and national) economies into powerhouses. As the jobs and employment opportunities have now well and truly come to a simmer, the market has now become an employers' market where they, not the workers, dictate the rules for engagement.

During the days of the "two speed economy" where skilled labour was in short supply, workers dictated the rules:

- Do I get a per diem rate for meals and allowances?
- Do I get paid for travel to and from site?
- Is there a gym on site?
- Do I get a new laptop and the latest iPhone so that I can keep in touch with my loved ones who I will only see once every 6 weeks?

And of course, will you be paying me 150% more than what I wold normally make in a slower economy because if you don't, the company next door will!

That was the reality of an out-of-control labour market.

Now, the labour market must sharpen it's pencils and prove that it has what it takes to run the distance. Rather than there now being one worker for every 2.1 jobs available, there are perhaps 12.5 workers available for every one job in resources. And who will get that job? The worker who can drive every piece of equipment. The worker who is reliable and honest. And the worker who not necessarily has worked for every mining company in town (sometimes, too many short term jobs on your CV means that you couldn't hold a job down...or perhaps were always chasing that next iPhone!).

The reality is that character matters. Some companies in fact are NOT looking for the jack-of-all-trades...you know, the worker who has spent 25 years on the tools. Why not? Because that worker tends to do things their way!

Companies today are calling the shots. After all, it is an employers market! And what better way than showing what your character is made of than by providing a national police check. Provide one when you provide your CV. Do something a bit different to set yourself apart, not only from having a clean record...but by taking the initiative.

Not sure if you have a clean record? Check yourself out...for as little as a small investment, you can find out in 60 seconds or less by applying online at Veritas Check today.

Hold that thought....Online National Police Checks in Just 60 Seconds...or less!

Just when you thought it couldn't get any faster, it has! Veritas Check has added a nitrous oxide booster to its back office processing system to now provide applicants Police Check results in 60 Seconds!

What used to be "Online Police Checks in 60 minutes" is now "Online Police Checks in 60 Seconds".

What does this mean for an applicant seeking to obtain a national Police Check? It means you can:

• Apply online, anytime day or night, even on the weekend for a Police Check
• Apply via a desktop or mobile device in less than 6-9 minutes
• Upload identity documents using the camera on your mobile device or upload a scanned image
• Do all this at a time and place convenient for you!
• Results for 7 out of 10 applicants are emailed within 60 seconds to you
• For the remaining 3 applicants, further checks by the state police agencies may require further time of up to 10 business days
• If you would like a hard copy of your results, you can order a copy to be posted to you

While there are many organisations offering online Police Checks, only Veritas Check can provide you with results in 60 Seconds or less, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Our innovative technology is the difference.

Our innovative technology removes the "Human-in-the-Loop" thereby ensuring there are no delays due to administrative errors or delays in terms of processing only during business hours.

Veritas Check is accredited by the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) and is authorised to access the National Police Checking Service (NPCS) to issue Police Check Certificates. All accredited agencies and Australian State and Territory Police (including the Australian Federal Police) access the NPCS to obtain Police Check results.

Veritas Check offers Police Checks online for all Australian states and territories. A Police Clearance Certificate is valid across all states including ACT, NSW, NT, QLD, SA, TAS, VIC, WA.

If you need a Police Check and need it FAST, there is only one provider who can do this for you: Veritas Check. Online National Police Checks in 60 Seconds.

Veritas Check's Latest Technology Enables Police Check Results in 30 Minutes

 

The Fastest Police Checks online

This month, Veritas Check (https://www.veritascheck.com.au/) released its latest version of software enabling applicants for National Police Checks to obtain results in as little as 30 minutes!

How does this work?

Applicants begin their application for a national police check by visiting Veritas Check's website. Once the applicant clicks "Apply Now" to begin the application process, personal information as mandated by CrimTrac, the agency conducting the background checks, is entered. During the application process, the applicant is asked to complete a 100-point check to verify their identification.

Applicants have three choices for completing this step:

• Applicants can use their mobile device's camera to snap a picture of their ID documents
• Applicants can later upload scanned copies of their ID documents
• Applicants can post in copies of their ID documents

If the applicant wished to obtain their results in the quickest possible manner, they will need to upload the images. Once the images are uploaded and the fee for the police check is paid, Veritas Check's" back office system" vets the information provided, conducts a verification of the identity document provided using its proprietary technology, and then submits the application to CrimTrac for a background check.

All of this processing in the back office occurs literally in seconds...

The processing at CrimTrac is the unfortunately one of the unknowns in terms of time it takes to complete the background checks. With that said, Veritas Check monitors the status of background checks at CrimTrac; its system constantly polls (i.e. communicates) the CrimTrac system through each hour of the day. Once results are ready, Veritas Check "grabs" the results and in turn issues them to the applicant.

If the applicant has requested to receive the results electronically, the Veritas Check system emails the PDF copy of the results. Employers seeking copies are also emailed results if appropriate consent from the applicant has been given.

All in all, for 7 out of 10 applicants, this entire process takes less than 30 minutes to complete once the application form is lodged with Veritas Check. For the remaining 3 out of ten folks, their applications for a background check are referred for further checks with state police agencies. The standard from CrimTrac is to have these completed within 10 business days.

Online Police Checks in 1 Hour - Fact or Fiction? ... Now in 30 Minutes or Less!

As technology continues to drive the way that industries operate, companies ever increasingly face the decision to either 'sink' or 'swim'; to embrace change and innovate or risk the chance of becoming obsolete and irrelevant. This of course only really matters if you are providing products or services for the market!

The Australian "Police Check" industry is no different from any other market or industry. To understand how this market works, one must first understand a few key Truths:

• All Police Checks in Australia are conducted by a single agency called CrimTrac. CrimTrac is a federal agency that provides a myriad of services for the law enforcement community. Providing police checks is but one of its many functions and services.
• Organisations who can administer police checking services (thereby issuing a "Police Check") can only do so if they have formal authorisation from CrimTrac. To gain authorisation, the organisation must meet a number of criteria and if accepted by CrimTrac, a formal contract / agreement is established. This agreement is standard in form for all agencies and dictates the processes by which organisations must operate.
• Organisations who provide Police Checking services are roughly divided into one of three camps:
• There are those who conduct Police Checks strictly for their own staff or contractors
• Others serve as a third party to provide Police Checks as a service to other organisations
• State police agencies provide police checks as part of their administrative services.
• Regardless of which camp an authorised Police Check issuing body sits in, they all must comply with the specifications by which CrimTrac manages the program.
• Finally, persons seeking to obtain a Police Check have a choice!

With all that in mind, what is the difference between Police Check issuing agents? The difference really comes down to cost and technology.

As stated above, CrimTrac is the central and only agency that can undertake National Police Checks. As such, one can logically conclude that the results of a Police Check do not vary based on the organisation which lodges the application for it. So a Police Check is a Police Check is a Police Check. And obviously the results of the police check will vary from person to person, but they will not vary from issuing organisation to organisation.

So why then do some agencies which issue Police Checks claim that they can deliver checks in "one hour". Is this true? Why do others claim they can complete most checks in 24-48 hours? Better yet, why do state police agencies claim it takes 2-3 weeks to process a police check application?

The answer is two-fold and comes down to:

1. Technology
2. Truthfulness

Let's consider the first point: technology. Most police check agencies process applications in one of two ways: paper based or software based. No doubt if you are accepting hand written applications as most state police agencies do, the police organisation will have to employ staff to take these handwritten forms, process them for completeness and then enter the details into the CrimTrac database (which all agencies do).

So regardless of whether you think the state police agencies should be doing this (instead of for example fighting crime) they provide a manual service. There are many other providers which also process manually for their internal staff.

The second mode of processing is completed via software. Agencies such as Veritas Check (www.veritascheck.com.au) have developed purpose built software systems that are integrated with websites to allow users to apply for Police Checks online at a time and place of the applicants' choosing. In fact, through the use of technology that is tailored specifically for mobile devices, applicants can use their smart devices 100% to apply online, capture images of their identity documents, etc.

Technology is the key differentiator between agencies issuing police checks. For those agencies which have embraced change, they are able to process applications in a significantly shorter period of time than the state police agencies. Likewise, because the applicant enters the data, there is a greater chance that the information will be correct and hold ups will not likely occur due to inaccuracies of data entered by data clerks contracted by the state police agencies.

So let's now talk about the Truthfulness part. Why do some agencies boldly make a claim that they can deliver police checks in one hour, when other agencies who use similar technology make claims of 24-48 hours. How is this so if all are using CrimTrac to process details? If we first assume that the technology is similar (and it is...really...collect data via an online form; use inbuilt systems to vet the data, and send to CrimTrac - the same is true of the reverse when receiving results). The answer to this then lies in the fine print...

Read what CrimTrac states about their service delivery:

How long will my check take?
Our aim, along with our police partner agencies, is to process 95% of police checks within 10 business days.

Around 70% of police checks are completed almost instantly and the results are provided to the organisation that requested the checks within minutes.

The remaining 30% of police checks are referred to one or more police agencies. Sometimes this process takes longer than 10 business days.

Then, for each agency which claims "Police Checks in one hour", read their fine print! Page after page of disclaimer will ultimately state what CrimTrac says..."most checks - actually 70% - are returned instantly...the others within 10 days.

So buyer beware! Who are you going to trust...the police check agency which is telling you a half-truth, or the one providing you with the correct information for you to make an educated decision!

AFP Police Checks for Citizenship or Immigration Purposes

For persons requiring a police check in support of an immigration, citizenship, or visa application with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, you will need to obtain an police check issued by the Australian Federal Police (AFP). This is also referred to as an "AFP police check".

The DIBP requires persons to be of "good character" and will determine or make the assessment of your character based on the outcomes of your national police history check or police check. Is this a fair consideration by the DIBP? It of course depends in part on what you consider fair.

For those persons applying for citizenship or seeking to enter Australia on a visa, many persons already living in Australia would think that this is a fair assessment criteria. In law abiding countries, where persons paying their taxes expect their monies provided to their government to spent on services that are critical to the running of the society, it is fair to expect that the recipients of those services are themselves worthy. If criminals or persons who in the past have broken laws are recipients of the benefits of those in society who work hard to provide for their families and also pay taxes, then justice is due.

Likewise, for those persons who pay their fair share of taxes, it is not unreasonable for them to expect the government to spend their hard earned dollars wisely.

On the contrary, if the law abiding citizens did not pay taxes, then how could government expect to run? Lawlessness and chaos would reign and society would eventually fail.

So what does this have to do with AFP Police Checks? The Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) needs to have a single standard by which they can assess applications for entry into Australia. This standard, they state, is that applicants will be judged and must be "of good character". The DIBP uses the results of police checks to make this determination.

Because privacy laws vary from each in Australia, some information may or may not appear for the same applicant depending on which state their application is lodged. As a result, police checks for the DIBP must be issued by the Australian Federal Police. These "AFP Police Checks" are thus a single source of truth by which all applicants for immigration or citizenship are assessed.

So is this a fair assessment? Given that all applicants are assessed by a similar process, using a single standard, then one MUST assume that the assessment is fair.

Should Police Checks be Mandatory for Politicians?

Given the recent news regarding Mr. Billy Gordon, the member for Cook (Queensland), one must consider whether all politicians should be required to have a police check conducted on their background and furthermore, whether the results of these checks should be made public.
 
Let's consider this in two parts

- Should a police check be required of all elected persons?
- Should the results of these checks be made public?

Firstly, no person should be forced to undertake a mandatory police check. As we live in a free society, the choice is up to an individual as to whether they do or not. Having said that though, there could be consequences of opting out of a check

In many places of employment, police checks are mandatory. Within the health and aged care industries for example, police checks are one way that providers can mitigate risks to those persons in their care. While a police check is only a indication of past behaviours, they do not guarantee that the person in question is not or will not commit a punishable offence. Police checks in this case are just one step in a process to reduce harm or the likelihood of harm to persons in the care of others. It is an employer's responsibility and duty of care to ensure that steps are taken as precautions.

Perhaps in the case of employment or volunteering, the individual may not be assessed as suitable to work. Is this fair? Certainly it is. Again, employers or organisations seeking to engage persons to assist in the delivery of services have a duty of care to ensure that only those persons engaged are of a character deemed suitable
Is this discrimination? Perhaps it is in a sense, however all persons are entitled to have a police check. if a person opts out, then they themselves have made a decision which ultimately impacts an ability to assess a person in terms of suitability

So should politician be required to undertake a police check prior to serving as an elected official? Using the argument above, they should of their own will have one conducted, however if they opt out, the electorate should judge accordingly. This is simply a matter of leadership.

So should the results of a politician's police check be made public? Only if the person consents to their record being made public. Again, every individual has a right to maintain privacy of their personal information - even politicians. Making the decision to release or not to release a police check is therefore the politician's personal choice.

Each politician, however, should be judged by the voting public in terms of whether they choose to release their police check results or not. Obviously, a clean record makes a statement. An unreleased record, also makes a statement
Veritas Check provides applicants with an ability to apply for a police check in as little as 10 minutes. For as little as $23.00 for the completion of a check for volunteers, why wouldn't you obtain a police check?

Police Checks - Can I get a Job Without One?

Consider the scenario where you have been out of work for a number of months and each week without fail you apply online for jobs. Then out of the blue, so it seems, you get that call from the agency!

It's your lucky day! Or is it?

Are you available to come in for an interview? Of course you are! You're always ready...in fact, born ready! So you get the suit and tie on (even though we all know that only bankers and those interviewing for jobs wear suits) and off you go with CV in hand. If you've been through one interview, you've been through at least one hundred of them, but today is your lucky day!

What could possibly go wrong?

...Phone on silent.

...CV freshly printed and even in a document holder.

...Tie correctly tied (in fact its been tied correctly for at least 5 years since your mum first tied it).

...Shirt pressed.

...Shoes shined.

Today is the big day.

So you walk into the recruiters office thinking you've got it bagged until you approach the receptionist...you notice just around the corner there's a queue of job seekers. All dressed impeccably, polished shoes, some with brief cases (they still use those?) and all staring down into their mobile devices pretending (perhaps) to look busy or as if to portray they've got an urgent meeting following this interview so hopefully it won't take long.

Confident, and not really demoralised, you take a seat next to a sophisticated looking chap who seems to be rechecking his CV as if he could really fix it if he found a typo. But then again, if he wrote it himself, why would he really need to be reviewing it in the first place?

Not to be outdone, you take a quick squiz down at yours to make sure you didn't do the unthinkable like misspell your name and email address, or accidently pick up from the printer the cover letter for the previous job you applied for last week. What an idiot you'd look like...right...errrrr.

So your name is called, a pleasant looking recruiter who themselves looks like this is their first job (how does that work?...they are going to help ME find a job when they themselves have never held one down in the real work force??). Nonetheless, you get up, exchange pleasantries, and head in for the interview.

The interview goes great...you've got the standard responses all down pat. Somewhere along the line you heard from a previous boss that its always good to go into an interview knowing what you want to tell them, and regardless of what they ask, you simply tell them the answer you've already planned...good advice...but I wonder where that guy is today!

So things are about to wrap up. You hand over a copy of your CV...knowing full well they'll can it because nobody does paper anymore, and then the big question hits you like a ton of bricks...

Have you got a police check done within the past 3 months?

What? Three months? Who the heck has ever heard that?

Well...no current police check and we can't put your name forward!

Your heart starts to race as you think of something to say, but all you can think of is, where the heck can I get one done and can I do it online? Who cares what it costs...and how long until I can get the results...a PDF is fine...

The answer is simple. Get your police check online at Veritas Check...