Urgent Help Needed Employment/Personal File Issues

[cazzie78]

Hello,

 

Can someone please advise me if it is acceptable for my current employer to hold a newspaper cutting of an article regarding an employment tribunal in relation to my previous employer? Following a subject access request for my personal file, I discovered that my present employer have kept this newspaper cutting on my file. They are saying that if anythign is deemed relevant to my present employment they will keep it on file. I have informed them that some contents of the newspaper article are inaccurate (due to inaccurate statements made by the representative for my previous employer at the tribunal hearing).

Also, I discovered that my present employer had contacted my previous employer by email and telephone requesting 'background notes and papers' on my medical history as they were 'considering my sick record'. Is this acceptable? I have written to my personal department and asked why they did this, and they have said that my sick record from my previous employer would transfer over, they deny requesting background medical information, even though I have it in writing in the form of an email.

I did not transfer between departments or anything like that, and I did an interview and aptitude test for my present job, and resigned from my previous employment, therefore I do not see how and why they can transfer my medical history from as far back as 2001.

 

I would really appreciate if someone could advise me on this?

 

Many thanks

 

Caz

[honeybee13]

Hello caz and welcome to the forum. This sounds odd to me, although I can't quote you chapter and verse at the moment.

 

Are your 2 employers connected at all? Normally, I would expect medical records to come under the Access to Medical Records 19?? legislation.

 

Depending on what answers you get here, have a look at the directgov and ACAS websites. ACAS also have a confidential helpline that you might like to ring.

 

My best, HB

[cazzie78]

hello HB

 

Thanks for your reply. I am based in N.Ireland, so ACAS unfortunately doesnt apply to me over here. There is a strange situation with my two employers, in that employee's of my previous employer used to be 'civil servants', which is my current employer. However this changed before my appointment to my previous employer, and I was directly employed by my previous employer and not a civil servant. I understand that there may have been some confusion surrounding this by personel, but cannot understand it as I clearly resigned from my previous employer and did an interview to get my present job! They have acknowledged this in a letter to me, but deny that they requested background medical information, which quite clearly they did.

It feels a bit like an invasion of privacy when you discover emails and telephone calls have been made to your previous employer asking about your medical background.

I am meeting with my union rep, though to be honest it seems like he is just trying to calm things down, and not really interested.

I am not sure where to go from here, and feel like my present employer think i am some kind of trouble maker as they have kept these things on my file.

 

Caz

[papasmurf1cx]

Hi Cazzie

 

Your employer's file on you must comply with data protection rules. If they are not accurate because you went through a ET case you should have the findings of the Tribunal to prove that your story is true and accurate. You could write to your employer and insist that the file does not comply with data protection and if they refuse to correct the mistake you can complain to the Information commissioner. You can raise a grievance not only on your file but also the lying to you especially as you have the evidence that they supplied you!!!

 

As far as your medical history is concerned.... this is a double edged sword. Now that they KNOW what your previous medical history is they are on notice if they do something that would jeopardise your health and well being. Personally I would shove it directly in their faces and tell them what problems arose previously but at present you are OK and it is not a problem (unless it is of course). Do you mind telling us what is the problem and whether it impacts on your job?

[cazzie78]

Hi there,

 

Thanks for your reply. The problem with my previous employer is pretty horrendous to be honest, and relates to a long drawn out series of bullying which really amounted to organisational bullying i.e. a certain incorrect attitude about me which seemed to spread. This culminated in my eventual transfer (which I had to fight for and was told that I must return to the office in which the bullying occured before I could transfer). In my new office, I faced a discliplinary for something I did not do (I cannot divulge the nature of this), but was told by HR if I stuck it out and went through the process that I would not lose my job. I was not suspended during investiagtion either, they just transfered me again to another office. However, this all became too much for me, and I resigned. My employment tribunal was for constructive dismissal, which didnt go anywhere because of a time issue (I was out of time by about 5 months). The tribunal cannot publish the result because of a false accusation made by the barrister, which is quite serious and I currently have a complaint in regarding this.

 

I believe that my present employers attitude to me has transferred from my previous employer, now that I find out there have been emails and telephone calls between each employer. My medical history is admittably pretty bad in my last employment, due to a series of ENT medical problems, operations, and stress induced mainly by the bullying. My sick in my present employer is alot better, however they tried to give me a warning for having one day over their policy of 4 occasions or 9 days in a running year.

 

Not sure where to go really, as even the employment tribunal seems like a dead end, and even though I hadnt initially gone to my union rep regarding my personal file, my present employer have contacted him and actually said that they have given me all the information they can and have asked him to speak to me.

 

Caz

[honeybee13]

Hello again caz. I do feel for you in all this. It sounds very complex and not very fair to me. You say you don't have ACAS, but isn't there a Northern Ireland equivalent? I just saw the name but have forgotten it. Have you spoken to them at all?

 

I hope we can help you to find a way out of all this.

 

HB x