this video I want to discuss a regular enough issue that arises in the
workplace that's to do with the conflict between the employees data protection or
data privacy rights and the entitlement or right of the employer to CCTV in the
workplace the recent decision there in February of 2020 from the high court
concerning this issue it's an interesting case they've written about
on my website employment rights Ireland calm was called Doolin versus the data
protection Commission Doolin worked in I think our ladies hospice in Harless
cross in the background - it was there was graffiti being forced to defend
graphically being posted in the premises or in a particular room in the employers
the Guardi by the employer to check the CCTV to see who has access to the room
in question turned out that Doolin had access to the room in question and was
subsequently disciplined not for the graffiti issue but for taking
unauthorized absences in other words he was seen going through and going from
this room on a number of occasions the employer carried out a disciplinary
procedure and disciplined Doolin for the unauthorized absences however the
employer used CCTV as part of the evidence against Doolin and against him
in terms of the allegations that he had to face that is you know straight
absences now the policy at the time in the
workplace was a CCTV footage was being used only for the purpose of health and
safety and security and dulin then I'm healed because he was disciplined it was
a disciplinary matter it wasn't a security issue it wasn't a health and
safety issue and they relied on the CCTV and he came that the urgent employer was
entitled to do so he appealed and was unsuccessful he appealed to the data
protection Commission the office of the data protection Commission in Ireland
they found against him and the phone against him on the basis
that the CCTV was gathered and processed for security reasons and they apparently
didn't accept that the further processing of the CCTV was for
disciplinary reasons and held that it was acceptable insofar as the original
gathering of the data of the CCTV was for security reasons Dula not happy with
this and he went to the circuit court at the circuit court he lost again and the
circuit court agreed with the office of the data protection Commission however
Doolin being a determined individual appealed to the High Court and the High
Court found in his favor and overturned the decision of the Circuit Court and
the office of the data protection Commission and basically held that if
the employer wanted to use the CCTV in disciplinary proceedings in the
workplace then employees had rights to be told us and told us in advance they
had told employees that CCTV was used for security purposes and Health and
Safety there was a lot that basis the high court found in favor of the
now I court found also that it appeared I think that the employer changed the
policy later on to include disciplinary situations and the High Court I think
held in their finding in the judgment that had that been the case at the time
that Doolin was subject to us then it would have been acceptable because the
purpose for which to gather the CCTV was consistent with what was set out in the
data gathering policy set up in the workplace it's an interesting case it's
Doolin versus the Irish data protection Commission you can read about it on my
website employment rights Ireland comm an incidentally an unusual feature of
the decision of the High Court on which the comment run was that the legislation
doesn't actually prescribe what is to happen if a person like do is successful
within the pale in other words the appeal was granted he was successful the
decision of the Circuit Court and the office of data protection Commission
were overturned however the High Court wasn't clear as to what it could order
then on force of its decision so I think he was sending the case back or the
matter back to the office of the data protection Commission and presumably it
might expect the office of data protection information to issue a
different decision and a different finding another interesting case between
the employers right security and Health and Safety and use CCTV in the workplace
and the employees right to privacy and data protection it's not an absolute
right neither party has an absolute right
there's always weighing often a balancing of the competing rights and
that's what happened in this case Doolin versus Irish data protection
Commission it's February 2020 decision and you can find it on my website
employment rights Ireland column find this video useful you might give it a
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