Get GDPR Ready!
Wendy Comerford • 27 March 2018
So what do you need to do? In plain English.
GET GDPR READY!
Get our GDPR Pack £300 - includes advice and documents to get you GDPR ready!
Fear not!
You no longer have to bury your head in the sand over the General
Data Protection Regulation. As a simple first step we have created a
straightforward guide to make you see things more clearly.
The old Data Protection Act 1998 will be upgraded on 25 May 2018 by a new and improved GDPR. A key reason for this make-over is due to the fact that we are using social media platforms and electronic means of communication a whole lot more than we used to; the "soon to be" old act just isn’t cutting it.
Here’s the bottom line: if you process personal data then the GDPR applies to you. If you don’t comply you’re exposing yourself to a €20 million fine or 4% of your annual global turnover – whichever is higher.
So let’s get to it: (by the way where you see a * in the text below means we can draft the documents that you need to save you spending hours doing it yourself).
The old Data Protection Act 1998 will be upgraded on 25 May 2018 by a new and improved GDPR. A key reason for this make-over is due to the fact that we are using social media platforms and electronic means of communication a whole lot more than we used to; the "soon to be" old act just isn’t cutting it.
Here’s the bottom line: if you process personal data then the GDPR applies to you. If you don’t comply you’re exposing yourself to a €20 million fine or 4% of your annual global turnover – whichever is higher.
So let’s get to it: (by the way where you see a * in the text below means we can draft the documents that you need to save you spending hours doing it yourself).
Storing Data
- Take
some time to have a look at how you store your personal data, how it
arrives and where it goes. Only keep personal data where it is
reasonably necessary to do so. It might be worth doing a diagram - kind
of like a family tree or a data map* to show a clear path of where and
how personal data is being used and stored.
Rights of Individuals Regarding their Personal Data
- Individuals have rights over how you use their personal data; there are 8 rights in total:
1. The right to be informed
2. The right of access
3. The right to rectification
4. The right to erasure (to be forgotten)
5. The right to restrict processing
6. The right to data portability
7. The right to object
8. Rights in relation to automated decision making and profiling.
- You need to ensure you have a policy* in place to deal with a request* from an individual to verify the lawfulness of your personal data processing.
Breaches of Data
- Get
a procedure* in place so you know what to do in the event that you
breach the GDPR. A breach that is more than just losing personal data.
It goes further to include a risk to the rights and freedoms of
individuals such as damage to reputation, financial loss and loss of
confidentiality. This is a really important step to take.
Staff Training - protect your business
- Have a chat to your employees about the new rules. Your business could be responsible for how they use and process personal data - and if they breach it - so its in your interest to get them up to speed with the changes by implementing a solid training policy*.
Data Policy
- Get a Data Protection Policy in place*. This is really important.
Consent from Employees
Privacy Notice
Data Protection Officer
- Get written consent from your employees to hold their personal data*
Privacy Notice
- Send
out a privacy notice* to your clients to let them know how you process
and store their personal data. Its compulsory to provide the following
information:
1. Your identity and contact details.
2. The purpose of processing their data and the legal basis for the processing of that data.
3. Who you share the personal data with.
4. Transfers outside EU and how data is protected.
5. Retention period or criteria used to set this.
6. Tell individuals of their right to withdraw their consent to their data being used and their right to complain.
Data Protection Officer
- Appoint a Data Protection Officer (DPO). Although this requirement only applies to public authorities, the GDPR implies that most businesses should have someone to check over compliance, even if they aren’t officially a DPO.
What next?
Call us for further help and for the documents that accompany this guidance highlighted with an * in the above text.
We can provide you with a GDPR Pack for £300 inclusive of VAT. Make it easier for yourself and your business.
Just remember that the content of this document is not a substitute for taking legal advice on your situation. If you need specific advice, get in touch and we’ll be happy to help. Keep checking back with us whilst the GDPR processes continue incase there are any updates you need to know about.
Sign this or be sacked!
Employment experts foresee an increase in employment tribunal cases brought by employees as a result of employers requiring employees back into the office, full time. Those who try to avoid days in the office may be faced with their employers using entry-gate data to track staff attendance. The Telegraph reports that a number of companies are now advocating a full five-day return to the office, with others enforcing a minimum number of days in the workplace. Administrative staff at Boots, who previously worked in the office three days a week, will be required to return to the office five days per week from September. Earlier this year, an Employment Tribunal rejected the case of a senior manager who claimed against her employer, the Financial Conduct Authority, because she wanted to work at home full-time. Judge R Richter ruled that the FCA was within its rights to reject the employee's request stating that there are “weaknesses with remote working.....which will no doubt be the subject of continued litigation.” Is working from home so bad? According to KPMG’s 2023, CEO Outlook Survey ( Current trends in remote working (kpmg.com) , attracting and retaining talent is a top operational priority for CEOs to achieving their 3-year growth objectives and believe that remote working can play an important role in supporting talent retention and accessing new talent markets. There will no doubt be an increased number of claims brought against employers as remote working dissipates and employer's start to change the working dynamics.
Menopause symptoms can have a significant impact on women at work. Research by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development found that two thirds of working women between the ages of 40 and 60 with experience of menopausal symptoms said they have had a mostly negative impact on them at work. Of those who were negatively affected at work: 79% said they were less able to concentrate. 68% said they experienced more stress. nearly half (49%) said they felt less patient with clients and colleagues, and 46% felt less physically able to carry out work tasks. Baroness Kishwer Falkner, chair of the EHRC, said: “As Britain’s equality watchdog, we are concerned both by how many women report being forced out of a role due to their menopause-related symptoms and how many don’t feel safe enough to request the workplace adjustments."
The Government has announced the rates of the National Living Wage (NLW) and National Minimum Wage (NMW) which will come into force from April 2024. The rates which will apply from 1 April 2024 are as follows: NMW Rate Increase: National Living Wage (21 and over) £11.44 18-20 Year Old £8.60 16-17 Year Old £6.40 Apprentice Rate £6.40 Accommodation Offset £9.99
New mandatory duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace – get prepared.
The EAT has held that an employee’s redundancy dismissal was unfair where the employer failed to carry out meaningful workforce consultation at a formative stage. The respondent company carried out a scoring exercise using a standard set of subjective criteria. The claimant scored lowest in out of three in his pool. The respondent then met with the claimant three times before dismissing for redundancy. No consultation took place with the workforce prior to the scoring exercise. The EAT held that there was a clear absence of consultation at the formative stage, which meant there was no opportunity to discuss different approaches to any aspect of the employer’s redundancy process. The decision underlines the importance of appropriate workforce consultation, even where collective consultation obligations are not triggered. De Bank Haycocks v ADP RPO UK Ltd [2023] EAT 129
What are Part-Year and Irregular workers and how is their holiday entitlement calculated?
Strike Action - what's going on? Trade unions are representing NHS staff are in a dispute with the government over the 2022/23 pay award. NHS England has stated that the service is facing record demand on urgent and emergency care services with the months of October and November being the busiest on record for A&E attendances and the most serious ambulance callouts. As a consequence, and for the first time in history, nurses and ambulance staff have gone on strike, represented by Trade Unions, regarding a dispute over wages. Royal College of Nurses (RCN) is calling for a 19% pay rise. The government says this is unaffordable.
Flexible working from day one of employment The Government has proposed to allow employees to request flexible working from the first day of their employment.
World Cup and Employment Law