City of Toronto Newsroom: Youth employment and hiring practices

Youth employment and hiring practices

The City of Toronto is one of the largest employers of youth in the country. At any time, there are approximately 10,000 part-time Recreation Workers employed by the City of Toronto. Each summer, approximately 3,000 individuals are hired into these positions.
Parks, Forestry and Recreation (PFR) employment opportunities give youth the opportunity to gain valuable work experience, training, confidence, leadership and life skills.
Part-time employment opportunities for youth is an important step in efforts to keep youth engaged in their communities in meaningful and constructive ways throughout their teen and early adult years. It also gives them a step up to gain entry to the workforce, while earning income.
The overwhelming majority of our young part-time workers rise to the challenges of employment and perform their responsibilities with professionalism and dedication.

There are documented policies and procedures in place with respect to hiring within PFR.
There is no legislated requirement for Police Reference Checks (PRC) within PFR. However, there is a self-directed policy that requires staff working with vulnerable populations including children to obtain a PRC.
Dealing with the high number of staff PFR hires annually is very complex administratively. Due to the timelines involved, staff are required to sign a self-declaration form and apply to the Toronto Police Service (TPS) for a PRC.
It can take up to 3 months for PRC results to be returned. They are provided by Toronto Police Service directly to the employee.
If the PRC is not produced an employee will be terminated.