Letting someone into your home is a real decision, and "they had good reviews" isn't much to go on. Here's exactly what happens between someone applying to work through Rhodex and actually being allowed to show up at a real job — nothing hidden, because you're the one opening the door.
Applying isn't the same as being approved
Anyone can fill out an application. Before they even start, we walk them through Rhodex University — a plain-language walkthrough of what applying actually involves and what we check, so nobody's surprised by the process. Submitting the form is step one, not the finish line.
A real person calls them
Every applicant gets a real courtesy call from our office, usually within 1-2 business days — not an automated form, an actual conversation before any paperwork gets reviewed. It's the first filter, and it's deliberately a human one.
What we actually check
- Insurance — confirmed before anyone's approved to work.
- WSIB clearance — verified, not self-reported. This one isn't optional or trade-dependent; it applies to everyone.
- A background check — run on every applicant, before approval, not after a first complaint.
- Trade licence verification — for the trades that are actually regulated in Ontario (licensed plumbers, licensed electricians), we verify their real licence number, the same way we explain you can check it yourself.
Any one of these failing means the application doesn't pass. There's no partial approval — it's all of the applicable checks, or none of it.
Why a first job is still called "trial"
Passing every check gets a craftsman to trial status, not an unlimited green light. It's the honest way to say: the paperwork checked out, and now the real work speaks for itself too. This is also exactly why Rhodex keeps real reviews inside the platform — approval is the floor, not the ceiling.
What actually happens before someone's approved
None of this makes a mistake on a job impossible — no vetting process anywhere can promise that. What it does mean: nobody reaches your door on a Rhodex job without a real phone conversation, a verified WSIB status, a background check, and — where the trade requires it — a licence someone actually confirmed against the provincial registry. That's the bar before "trial" even starts.