ICO opens employment data consultation

UK – The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has launched a consultation as part of a planned update to the regulator’s employment practices guidance.

Lock representing data privacy

In a blog post by Anulka Clarke, acting director of regulatory assurance at the ICO, the regulator confirmed it was looking for view on how personal data was used in employment practices.

The ICO said it was looking to also provide easily accessible online resources to replace the current code, and said that the guidance would cover topics such as recruitment and selection, employment records, monitoring of workers and information about workers’ health.

Responses are requested from large and small businesses, workers, trades unions, professional and trade bodies. The consultation closes on 21st October 2021.

Clarke wrote: “Artificial intelligence and machine learning are impacting the ways decisions are made about workers; monitoring technologies are more varied and widespread in use; and the Covid-19 pandemic has suddenly accelerated the trend for remote working and for obtaining health data.

“When used in the workplace, these developments and other similar issues can impact on people’s privacy. It’s vital that employers understand how they can operate in the changing environment and build trust with their workers when it comes to protecting their information rights.”

We hope you enjoyed this article.
Research Live is published by MRS.

The Market Research Society (MRS) exists to promote and protect the research sector, showcasing how research delivers impact for businesses and government.

Members of MRS enjoy many benefits including tailoured policy guidance, discounts on training and conferences, and access to member-only content.

For example, there's an archive of winning case studies from over a decade of MRS Awards.

Find out more about the benefits of joining MRS here.

0 Comments

Display name

Email

Join the discussion

Newsletter
Stay connected with the latest insights and trends...
Sign Up
Latest From MRS

Our latest training courses

Our new 2025 training programme is now launched as part of the development offered within the MRS Global Insight Academy

See all training

Specialist conferences

Our one-day conferences cover topics including CX and UX, Semiotics, B2B, Finance, AI and Leaders' Forums.

See all conferences

MRS reports on AI

MRS has published a three-part series on how generative AI is impacting the research sector, including synthetic respondents and challenges to adoption.

See the reports

Progress faster...
with MRS 
membership

Mentoring

CPD/recognition

Webinars

Codeline

Discounts