My 'two penneth'
As the information is clearly sensitive it appears it can only be captured
with employee consent unless one of the other Sch 3 conditions can be
justified. One way to test the system is as an individual to only supply
that which you feel is needed and wait for the justifications to supply
more. Employers collecting excessive data in breach of DPA processing
conditions and purposes leave themselves open to malpractice reporting.
Individuals may need to call on the courage of their convictions to acheive
clarity.
If the illness is a commuicable disease there are statutory Health and
Safety obligations for employer (As per Sch 3 para 2) but these do not
appear to be blanket provisions. The employee themselves must of course also
be acting responsibly and informing of any communicable disease.
Informed consent seems the only way forward from a pratical view. In my view
if employer asks for information and employee provides it without challenge
then consent has been given provided no duress was applied.
Anyone disagree?
Dvaid Wyatt
> -----Original Message-----
> From: This list is for those interested in Data Protection issues
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Mark Lenihan
> Sent: 08 November 2001 09:44
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: medical information recorded by personnel sections
>
>
> The following is a personal view.
>
> I suspect this is one of those areas that has never been properly
> looked at,
> and organisations more or less do as they please. Wherever I have worked I
> have been expected to provide some symptomatic reason for being
> off sick. As
> a manager I have expected staff to give reasons for being off sick. This
> situation has only applied to short term sickness (under a week),
> since, for
> periods beyond a week medical certificates were expected. As
> these are from
> a doctor and carry some indication of the reason for a person being off
> there would then be a record of the actual reason for the
> sickness absence.
>
> As a manager I would only expect take action over sickness absence if the
> number of days off exceeded the standard set by the organisation,
> or if the
> absences exhibited a pattern (e.g. every Monday). Also, the
> organisation may
> expect a 'return to work' interview to be held for any length of absence.
>
> The problem that I can see with the system that I am familiar with is that
> the initial sickness reporting (with details) can be collected by
> anybody in
> the organisation. A member of staff may not be able to speak directly to
> their manager and may have to leave a message with another member of staff
> or on an answer machine. The purposes of this initial data
> collection is to
> determine whether a member of staff is available for work, and it is also
> 'sensitive data' relating to health. The reason for the absence
> (other than
> 'off sick'), is not immediately relevant. It should therefore be
> covered by
> Principles 1 and 3 of the DPA. If further action is required, such as a
> sickness interview with a manager or personnel, the reasons for the
> absence(s) can be considered in a closed meeting. Doctor's certificates
> should only be seen by a relevant manager. This should ensure
> that personal
> details are kept to those who need to know, and that any processing should
> be within the interests of the data subject.
>
>
>
>
>
>
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