31 August 2021
To: All Mandate Members, Dunnes Stores
From: The Dunnes National Committee
Re: Data Protection Concerns/PCR Test Results
Mandate has written to Dunnes Stores raising concerns in relation to the “Store Attendance Declaration” which has been requested by the Company for workers returning from abroad to provide a negative PCR test upon their return to work. The Union believes this encroaches on members’ sensitive personal data and it therefore excessively invades their data protection rights.
Dunnes are required to do no more than confirm that a staff member is in a position to return to work having fully complied with the mandatory hotel quarantine guidelines or whether they have been advised to self-isolate/restrict their movements.
Information relating to vaccination amounts to health data and is therefore categorised as Special Category Data. Questions about whether an employee has been vaccinated are objectionable from the perspective of a member’s data protection rights. The Data Protection Commissioner has specifically said that “Situations may arise where employers need to be made aware of when an employee will be available for work after travelling to Ireland from abroad and undergoing any required periods of self-isolation. It should not be strictly necessary for employee’s vaccination status to be recorded in such instances, rather the employee can be asked to indicate the date on which they will be in a position to return to work”.
Members should be required to do no more than confirm that they are in a position to return to work having fully complied with the relevant HSE quarantine guidelines.
Please see below contents of corresponence which has been sent to a number of senior management within the HR Department in Dunnes Stores in the past number of days;
JH/LF
26 August 2021
Human Resources Department
Dunnes Stores
46-50 South Great Georges Street
Dublin 2
Re: Data Protection Concerns/PCR Test Results
To Whom it May Concern
Further to the publication of a “Store Attendance Declaration” form that is to be signed and returned to the store manager upon our members’ return to work, please be advised of the following.
Mandate wishes to raise concerns regarding a request by the company for workers returning from abroad to provide a negative PCR test upon their return to work, which the Union believes encroaches on our members’ sensitive personal data and it therefore excessively invades their data protection rights. The Union’s position is that Dunnes workers should be required to do no more than confirm that they are in a position to return to work having fully complied with the mandatory hotel quarantine guidelines or whether they have been advised to self-isolate/restrict their movements.
The implication of Questions 7 and 8 compels the worker to confirm their status in relation to being in receipt or not of a vaccination, as well as a PCR test. The Union’s position is that information relating to vaccination amounts to health data and is therefore, categorised as Special Category Data. The Union feels that questions about whether an employee has been vaccinated are objectionable from the perspective of a member’s data protection rights. The Data Protection Commissioner has specifically said that “Situations may arise where employers need to be made aware of when an employee will be available for work after travelling to Ireland from abroad and undergoing any required periods of self-isolation. It should not be strictly necessary for employee’s vaccination status to be recorded in such instances, rather the employee can be asked to indicate the date on which they will be in a position to return to work”.
If the aim of the questions is to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace, this can be achieved through asking the various questions in a different way that does not require the member to disclose health data/special category data and breach the specific guidance provided by the Data Protection Commissioner. The Union’s position is that the questions in the document as they are currently framed disproportionately infringe on our members’ data protection rights in circumstances where the same purpose could be achieved by asking employees the same questions in a different manner.
Mandate is seeking a review of the document so as to ensure all our members in Dunnes Stores data protection rights are maintained. We believe that our members should be required to do no more than confirm that they are in a position to return to work having fully complied with the relevant HSE quarantine guidelines.
Yours sincerely
For Mandate Trade Union
Jonathan Hogan
National Coordinator
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