A comparative analysis of the implications the Data Protection Act (2001) has on employment

Abstract

The introduction examines some general issues with respect to the application of data protection in the context of employment. It examines aspects such as the right to privacy granted to each person, the data protection principles applicable at the workplace and also the element of consent in the employment context. The first chapter examines the pre-employment stage. This stage commences from when the employer expresses his intention to recruit personnel and ends with the choice of the applicant. There are various processes which must be considered at this stage and each stage attracts particular data protection provisions. The second and third chapters are related in that they both discuss the issue of monitoring of employees. The second chapter is based on a theoretical examination of the various legal provisions that regulate such monitoring. This chapter carefully analyses the limits and exceptions imposed on the employer intending to cause the monitoring of his employees. The third chapter focuses on the more practical aspects of monitoring. In the light of the examination made in the second chapter, this chapter proposes practical ways which may be adopted by the employer in order that he may proceed with legitimate monitoring of his employees, such as the adoption of policies by the employer. The fourth chapter discusses the legal position and protection offered to personal data retained by the employer during the course of employment. This chapter examines various other Acts, and their relation with the provisions of the Data Protection Act. The fifth chapter focuses on the transfer of employees' personal data between different countries. This chapter examines different methods used by business organisations to transfer data within the provisions of Data Protection. The annex to this thesis is an Electronic Communications Policy drafted on the guidelines discussed in chapter three. It is a sample policy that can be adopted by the employers at their workplace.