What rights do workers have?
- Remember that workers have a legal right of access to information you hold on them. This includes information about grievance and disciplinary issues, and information you obtain through monitoring. Normally you must give access when a worker requests it, but you can withhold information where providing it to the worker would make it more difficult to detect crime.
- Make sure you have arrangements in place to deal with access requests properly and within the 40-day time limit stipulated in the law.
- When giving access to employment records be careful with information about other people. It could be wrong, for example, to disclose the identity of someone alleging harassment to the person accused of carrying out the harassment.
- If there is a discrepancy between what an applicant tells you and what you learn by carrying out a check, give the applicant an opportunity to give their side of the story. Remember that the information you get from a check could be wrong, particularly if it comes from public records.
- Allow workers to comment on or object to the information you gather through monitoring where it might adversely affect them. It may be that equipment or system faults mean that the information obtained through monitoring is inaccurate or misleading. Information from third parties may simply be wrong.
- Allow workers to comment about the health information you gather where it might adversely affect them. It may be that a medical test has not been carried out correctly, so you are holding inaccurate or misleading information.
- If a worker objects to you holding or using information about them because it causes them distress or harm, delete the information or stop using it in the way complained about unless you have a compelling reason to continue.
- Workers can claim compensation if they suffer as a result of a breach of the Data Protection Act, so it is in your interests to make sure records are well managed and used responsibly.