Hello all

 

I have yet to have a discussion here with our HR department on this but I agree with Sara’s last line.  This is ‘guidance’ whereas the Data Protection Act is a legal requirement. I think the maximum they are recommending retention for is 1year.  They say “The duration the migrant is sponsored Or One Year, Or until a visiting officer has examined and approved them – whichever is shorter, unless the document needs to be kept for other purposes.”

 

Even so, I think a year is excessive for failed application forms.  An application form of failed applicants shouldn’t be re-purposed by the Home Office to provide some kind of proof for a non EEA person (Principle 2 processed for limited purpose).  Hanging on to failed applicant personal data for months is excessive and not relevant to that person (principle 3).  We shouldn’t be obliged to hang on to failed applicants forms for longer than is necessary, which surely refers to necessary for us and the failed applicant, not the Home Office (Principle 5). 

 

We might eventually end up stretching our retention for these from 6 months to 1year but I’m not keen.

 

Phil

University of Northampton

 

 

Dear all

 

I’ve recently been talking to my Personnel department about retention of documentation. They have drawn to my attention the Home Office guidance on documentation for migrant workers. http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/documents/employersandsponsors/pbsguidance/ (and see Appendix D). As I read it this guidance says that if a migrant worker applies for a post the details of all other shortlisted applicants (emails, CVs, names, addresses and the helpful “etc”) should be kept for the duration the migrant is sponsored.

 

I’m told that for us this is likely to be a five year period, and that many people prefer to then continue with migrant status, so potentially we are keeping for personal details of people who didn’t get a job here for 10 years, which seems a tad over the top to me.

 

Has anyone else picked up on this? Are you updating your retention schedules accordingly? Or are you assuming that the word “guidance” in the document title is pretty much synonymous with “advice” and ignoring it?

 

Many thanks

 

Sara

 

Sara Stock

University Records Manager

University of Essex

Wivenhoe Park

Colchester

CO4 3SQ

 

Tel: (01206) 874853
E-mail: sstock

(non-Essex users should add @essex.ac.uk to create a full e-mail address)