9 minute read
Employment Law Update
NEW ICO RESOURCES FOR HR TEAMS USING WORKERS’ PERSONAL DATA
By Sean Morris
Navigator Employment Law
In 2023, one of the biggest challenges facing HR professionals will be keeping up-to-speed with new guidance on handling workers’ personal data. In October 2022, ICO25 - the Information Commissioner’s Office three-year action plan - was finalised.
The regulator also opened consultation on new draft guidance, the initial stages of an ongoing project to replace its Employment Code of Practice with an online hub of UK GDPRfocused resources – a one-stop shop for organisations and workers to answers questions about handling personal data.
New ICO draft guidance: Monitoring and Using Workers’ Health Information Monitoring includes:
Monitoring includes:
• Checks on a worker’s electronic devices (such as access controls or timekeeping checks on their computers, laptops, mobile phones). • Technologies which enable workplace vehicle tracking (such as dash-cams). • Video surveillance (such as CCTV or wearable cameras used for the purpose of health and safety). The new ICO draft guidance covers occasional monitoring, where introduced as a short-term measure for a fixed time period or specific need (for example, installing cameras to Investigate suspected theft). But it also covers situations where all workers are monitored as a matter of course (using software to monitor productivity or security, for instance).
Post-Covid, remote working remains commonplace, and in situations where workers outside an organisation’s premises accesses sensitive commercial or personal data, appropriate security arrangement may involve a degree of monitoring. The ICO’s draft guidance reminds organisations to keep in mind that workers’ expectations of privacy are likely higher at home than in the workplace. In addition, there is an increased risk of an organisation capturing family and private life information, which should be factored into planning and decision making around such monitoring.
In the draft guidance on using workers’ health information, key topics covered include identifying a lawful basis for processing health data, data minimisation, transparency and retention. It also discusses carrying out Data Protection Impact Assessments (DPIAs), sharing personal data with other organisations, automated decision making, as well as specialist topics such as occupational health schemes, medical examinations, genetic testing, and health monitoring.
Consultation on draft guidance on monitoring workers closes on 11 January 2023 and consultation on using workers’ health information closes on 26 January 2023. No dates have been given for when finalised guidance will be available online.
ICO Action Plan: Priorities in 2023
ICO25 set out initiatives the regulator will introduce before October 2023. A priority in the first year will be safeguarding and empowering the public, particularly the most vulnerable groups (such as children and the elderly) through a better understanding of how their personal information is used and can be accessed. At the same time, the ICO aims to bring down the burden and cost of compliance for organisations.
Among proposals to achieve those aims, the ICO plans to launch a database which publishes recommendations it has made to organisations following audits, investigations, or complaints. Anonymous case studies will be available online, giving examples of improved practice and best or good practice. They will also host an online forum for organisations to discuss questions about data protection compliance, acknowledging the value of knowledge sharing and networking. It is hoped this resource, moderated by the ICO, will bring together experts and help support organisations.
Other free resources likely to be welcomed by HR professionals include making available a range of ICO ‘off the shelf’ templates, checklists and products to help organisations develop proportionate privacy management programmes.
Subject Access Requests (SARs) to Increase?
Perhaps not all the ICO’s proposals will receive a warm welcome from HR professionals.
ICO25 includes plans for an online ‘Subject access request (SAR) generator’ to help individuals identify where their personal information may be held and how to request it in ways which will assist organisations to respond effectively. This tool will generate a template SAR which can be sent in, and at the same time, the organisation will receive corresponding information direct from the ICO which, it claims, will help it respond quickly and simply to the SAR. Those requests, more often than not, are forwarded internally by organisations to HR professionals – so this new tool may mean a very busy year ahead.
Back in September, the ICO publicised enforcement actions taken against seven UK organisations which had failed in their obligations when responding to SAR. Prior to this, only once since the UK GDPR came into force in 2018 had the regulator publicised such actions. This suggests it is running out of patience with organisations who do not respond properly when individuals exercise personal data rights.
Another concern prioritised by the regulator is AI (Artificial Intelligence) driven discrimination. It will be investigating concerns over the use of algorithms to sift recruitment applications, which has potential to negatively impact on work opportunities of those from diverse backgrounds. Also it will look at exclusion from digital services of people with certain protected characteristics.
The Equalities and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) ECHR is supporting this work, with their Chief Executive, Marcial Boo, having contributed to the ICO’s annual conference in July. Both regulators want improved awareness in UK organisations of how the Equality Act 2010 and the UK’s Human Rights Act apply to use of personal data in relation to automated decision making and new digital software and apps for HR activities such as recruitment. While digital platforms have the potential to improve equality of opportunity, there needs to be recognition of how making services digital by default risks less favourable treatment of some groups with protected characteristics, such as age and disability.
Navigator Law will deliver training and webinars on the finalised ICO guidance when published in 2023.
Review Review of 2022 of 2022
A tumultuous A tumultuous year! year!
Scottish HR faced some incredible new challenges in 2022. Postcovid recovery, world events, skills shortages, a cost of living crisis and a stormy UK political scene ensured practitioners’ work was cut out. Andy Moore looks back at the key topics Hr NETWORK Magazine featured during a tumultuous year.
If 2022 proved to be an eventful year for Scotland’s HR community, 2023 will keep practitioners on their toes in even more challenging ways. Last year was influenced by several events, not least when many workplaces returned to some semblance of pre-pandemic normality.
Rocky UK politics, skills shortages, the UkraineRussia conflict and the cost-of-living crisis catalysed a testing time for HR to re-evaluate its people practices.
First out of the blocks, in the January issue, we featured the Great Resignation, which prophesised that 25% of UK employees planned to leave their jobs in 2022. By the end of the year, only 15% of senior decision makers in UK businesses believe the Great Resignation did not affect them, reveals consultancy, Barnett Waddingham.
Radically-changed working environments and values have given employees a different vision on who they would like to work for – and these career aspirations are born out by a candidate-driven market - although this is now cooling off.
The UK workforce’s trend to down tools and look for alternative careers or roles was reflected in the Employee Burnout feature we published in the March issue. And despite many employees drastically changing their work patterns since March 2020, the apparent treadmill work ethic in some organisations is taking its toll on employees.
Workplace consultancy, Catalyst, discovered in global research that 92% of workers report burnout from the stress in their workplace, their Covid work experiences and/or their personal lives. Glassdoor revealed that over half of Scottish workers admit that their job regularly eats into their personal life, with burnout on the rise again.
“Burnout leads to turnover, but that can be mitigated by remote work policies and inclusive, empathic leadership,” said Catalyst President and CEO, Lorraine Hariton. “When implemented effectively, flexible work options can help organisations access more talent and less turnover, as well as increased innovation and productivity.”
Also in our March issue, the Hr Network National Awards and Gala Dinner opened for entries. Into May, Hr NETWORK Magazine discovered how President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s tenacious leadership style can be an inspiration to Scottish practitioners, especially during difficult times. Critical leadership is pertinent to testing situations inside organisations – for example in circumstances such as redundancy, restructure and tough economic trading.
Little needs emphasising just how much HR, business leaders and employees can learn from Zelenskyy’s leadership ethos in times of adversity and in peace time too.
Effective communication in adverse times, as well in times of peace, is vital to inspire and motivate colleagues. He has remained clear and unambiguous throughout the conflict and most Ukrainians, our research discovered, find him incredibly honest.
Continuing the best practice theme, our July issue saw us feature the growing importance of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG). We took a closer look at how Scottish business, Premier Technical Resources (PTR), embodies the process in its resourcing business. ESG can best be described as a vehicle for delivering a broad range of greener, more diverse and sociallyresponsible policies – those that organisations have strived to embody over many years.
The environmental aspect considers how organisations may safeguard the environment and how its corporate policies address climate change. In turn, the social criteria examines how they manage relationships with employees, suppliers, customers and communities. Lastly, governance deals with aspects such as leadership, audits and internal controls.
As summer turned to autumn, and with the Ukraine conflict gaining momentum, we spoke with Dr Arlene Egan of Roffey Park International on the timely topic of influencing in HR.
Dr Egan revealed that when HR influences well, it can move mountains. Post pandemic, she believed the seismic shift in organisational and workforce profile, catalysed by HR as a strategic business partner with leadership, has revolutionised the profession.
“HR should have a seat at the leadership table, figuratively and literally. They must be able to inform the board about the reality of what it’s like to be a member of staff,” she explained. “The decisions we make, whether at board or executive level, must be bound in reality or they will not work and lead to higher staff turnover and a poor work culture.”
So, this was 2022 in a snapshot. From the Great Resignation to Burnout, ESG and Critical Leadership to Influencing HR – all these topics united a common theme: how vital it is for HR to adapt its personnel strategies to move with the times in 2023. This year is set to bring a whole new set of challenges, both in economic and world event terms. But the mission, should Scottish HR choose to accept it, is to put its people first as always!
2022 – A year in HR challenges
• Stormy UK politics, skills shortages, war and the cost-of-living crisis led HR to re-evaluate its people practices. • By the end of 2022, only 15% of senior decision makers in UK business believed the Great
Resignation did not affect them. • Over half of Scottish workers admit that their job regularly eats into their personal life, with burnout on the rise again. • President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s bold and tenacious leadership style has been inspirational to
Scottish practitioners. • ESG enshrines and delivers a broad range of greener, more diverse and socially-responsible policies. • When HR influences well it can move mountains.
The seismic shift in organisational and workforce profile has revolutionised the profession.
