Purpose

Solution Search Ltd is committed to meeting its data protection obligations. This policy sets out the organisation’s commitment to data protection, individual rights and obligations in relation to personal data processed as part of our recruitment, employment, worker supply and client service activities within the rail and construction industries.

The organisation has appointed the Infrastructure Director, as its Data Protection Officer (DPO). Their role is to inform and advise the organisation on its data protection obligations. This post holder can be contacted for questions about this policy, or requests for further information, should be directed to the data protection officer.

Scope

This policy applies to the personal data of job applicants, employees, temporary workers, agency workers, apprentices, contractors and former employees or workers. This includes data processed for recruitment, competence checks, right-to-work checks, payroll, training records, client site access, rail sponsorship or construction assignment administration where relevant.

Terms and Definitions

 Some key terms used in this document are defined as follows:

Personal data: is any information that relates to an individual who can be identified from that information alone or in combination with other identifiers the organisation possesses or can reasonably access. Processing is any use that is made of data, including collecting, storing, amending, disclosing or destroying it.

Special categories of personal data: means information about an individual’s racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, health, sex life or sexual orientation and biometric data.

Criminal records data: means information about an individual’s criminal convictions and offences, and information relating to criminal allegations and proceedings.

Processing: this relates to all actions or handling of personal data by manual or automated means, e.g. data collection, erasure, destruction plus everything in between including recording, use, disclosure, sharing and storage.

Data Protection Principles

 The company processes personal data in accordance with the following protection principles:

  • The company processes personal data lawfully, fairly and in a transparent
  • The company collects personal data only for specified, explicit and legitimate
  • The company processes personal data only where it is adequate, relevant and limited to what is necessary for the purposes of processing.
  • The company keeps accurate personal data and takes all reasonable steps to ensure that inaccurate personal data is rectified or deleted without delay.
  • The company keeps personal data only for the period necessary for processing and will not keep personal data for longer than necessary.
  • The company adopts appropriate measures to make sure that personal data is secure, and protected against unauthorised or unlawful processing, and accidental loss, destruction or damage.

Processing of Personal Data

SSL informs individuals the reasons for processing their personal data, how it uses such data and the legal basis for processing in its privacy notices. It will not process personal data of individuals for other reasons.

Where we process special categories of personal data or criminal records data to perform obligations or to exercise rights in employment law, this is done in accordance with a policy on special categories of data and criminal records data.

We will update personal data promptly if an individual advises that his/her information has changed or is inaccurate.

Personal data gathered during the employment, worker, relationship, or apprenticeship is held in the individual’s personnel file (in hard copy or electronic format, or both), and on company systems.

We will not transfer personal data to another country without appropriate safeguards in place.

SSL keeps a record of its processing activities in respect of HR-related personal data in accordance with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

Individual Rights

As a data subject, individuals have several rights in relation to their personal data. Their rights include:

Right of Access (Subject access requests)

Individuals have the right to make a subject access request. If an individual makes a subject access request, we will tell them:

  • Whether or not their data is processed and if so why, the categories of personal data concerned and the source of the data if it is not collected from the individual.
  • To whom their data is or may be disclosed, including to recipients located outside the EU/EEA and the safeguards that apply to such transfers.
  • For how long their personal data is stored (or how that period is decided)
  • their rights to rectification or erasure of data, or to restrict or object to
  • their right to complain to the Information Commissioner if they think the organisation has failed to comply with their data protection rights.
  • Whether or not the organisation carries out automated decision-making and the logic involved in any such decision-making

We will also provide the individual with a copy of the personal data undergoing processing. This will normally be in electronic form if the individual has made a request electronically unless they agree otherwise.

To make a Subject Access Request (SAR), the individual should send the request to DPO.

In some cases, the company may need to ask for proof of identification before the request can be processed. We will inform the individual if they need to verify their identity and the documents we require of the individual’s data; we will respond within thirty days of the date the request is received.

If a SAR is manifestly unfounded or excessive, the company is not obliged to comply with it. Alternatively, we can agree to respond but will charge a fee, which will be based on the administrative cost of responding to the request.

A SAR is likely to be manifestly unfounded or excessive where it repeats a request to which the organisation has already responded. If an individual submits a request that is unfounded or excessive, we will notify them that this is the case and whether or not it will respond to it.

Right to be Informed

Individuals have the right to be informed about the collection and use of their personal data, to be notified of a personal breach which is likely to result in high risk to their rights and freedoms and to be provided information on the purpose for processing their data including the relevant retention periods and whoever it will be shared with.

Right to Rectification

Individuals have the right to have inaccurate data which we hold on them to be rectified. The request must not be in a form format and we will respond within one calendar month. The individual has the right to require the company to stop processing their data for a period if the data is inaccurate or if there is a dispute about whether or not the individual’s interests override the organisation’s legitimate grounds for processing data.

Right to Erasure

This right is also known as the ‘the right to be forgotten’. Individuals have the right to require the company to stop processing or erase their data if the individual’s interests override the company legitimate grounds for processing data (where we rely on its legitimate interests as a reason for processing data). They can also request for their data to be erased where it is no longer necessary for the purpose of processing.

Right to Restrict Processing

Individuals have the right to request the company to restrict processing their data for a specific period of time (within reason). We may still store the data but will not use the data for the specified period.

Right to Object

Individuals have the right to object to the processing of their personal data in certain circumstances for example to be used for direct marketing.

In addition, individuals have the right to make a complaint to the supervisory authority – the Information

Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

Data Security

The company takes the security of personal data seriously. There are internal policies and controls in place to protect personal data against loss, accidental destruction, misuse or disclosure, and to ensure that data is not accessed, except by employees in the proper performance of their duties. We will regularly evaluate and test the effectiveness of its safeguards to ensure adequate security is maintained.

Where we engage third parties to process personal data on our behalf, such parties do so based on written instructions, are under a duty of confidentiality and are obliged to implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to ensure the security of data.

Impact Assessments

Some of the processing that is carried out may result in risks to privacy. Where processing would result in a high risk to individual’s rights and freedoms, the company will carry out a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) to determine the necessity and proportionality of processing. This will include considering the purposes for which the activity is carried out, the risks for individuals and the measures that can be put in place to mitigate those risks.

Data Breaches

If we discover that there has been a breach of personal data that poses a risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals, it will report it to the Information Commissioners’ Office (ICO) within 72 hours of discovery. We will record all data breaches regardless of their effect.

If the breach is likely to result in a high risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals, we will inform affected individuals that there has been a breach and provide them with information about its likely consequences and the mitigation measures we have taken.

Individual Responsibilities

Individuals are responsible for helping the company keep their personal data up to date. Individuals should provide notice if data provided to the company changes, for example if an individual changes his/her bank details or moves to a new house.

Individuals may have access to the personal data of other individuals and of our customers and clients in the course of their employment, contract, volunteer period, internship or apprenticeship. Where this is the case, we rely on individuals to help meet our data protection obligations to staff, to customers and to our clients.

Individuals who have access to personal data are required:

  • To access only data which they have authority to access and only for authorised
  • Not to disclose data except to individuals (whether inside or outside the organisation) who have appropriate authorisation.
  • To keep data secure (for example by complying with rules on access to premises, computer access, including password protection, and secure file storage and destruction)
  • Not to remove personal data, or devices containing or that can be used to access personal data, from the premises without adopting appropriate security measures (such as encryption or password protection) to secure the data and the device.
  • Not to store personal data on local drives or on personal devices that is used for work
  • Any data protection breaches are swiftly brought to the attention of the Data Protection Officer and you support the DPO in resolving breaches.

Failing to observe these requirements may amount to a disciplinary offence, which will be dealt with under the disciplinary procedure of the company. Significant or deliberate breaches of this policy, such as accessing employee or customer data without authorisation or a legitimate reason to do so, may constitute gross misconduct and could lead to dismissal without notice.

Training

Appropriate training will be provided to all individuals about their data protection responsibilities as part of the induction process and at regular intervals thereafter.

Individuals whose roles require regular access to personal data, or who are responsible for implementing this policy or responding to subject access requests under this policy, will receive additional training to help them understand their duties and how to comply with them.

Contact  

Questions, comments and requests regarding this privacy notice are welcomed and should be addressed to Simon Haupt (Data Protection Officer) Solution Search Ltd, 11 Ducketts Wharf, South Street, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts CM23 3AR. Email sh@sol-rec.com

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