Job Applicants and Candidates Privacy Notice (GDPR compliant)

Balmoral Group Holdings Ltd (the Company) is aware of its obligations under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and is committed to processing your data securely and transparently. This privacy notice sets out, in line with GDPR, the types of data that we collect and hold on you as a job applicant. It also sets out how we use that information, how long we keep it for and other relevant information about your data.

Data controller details

The Company is a data controller, meaning that it determines the processes to be used when using your personal data.

Data protection principles

In relation to your personal data, we will:

• process it fairly, lawfully and in a clear, transparent way
• collect your data only for reasons that we find proper for the purposes of recruitment or employment
• only use it in the way that we have told you about
• ensure it is correct and up to date
• keep your data for only as long as we need it
• process it in a way that ensures it will not be used for anything that you are not aware of or have consented to (as appropriate), lost or destroyed

Types of data we process

We hold many types of data about you, including:

• your personal details including your name, address, date of birth, email address, phone numbers
• information included on your CV including references, education history and employment history

How we collect your data

We collect data about you in a variety of ways including the information you would normally include in a CV or a job application cover letter and notes made during a recruitment interview.  Other details may be collected directly from you in the form of official documentation such as your driving licence, passport or other right to work evidence.

In some cases, we will collect data about you from third parties, such as employment agencies, former employers for references or credit reference agencies.

Personal data is kept in secure files within the Company’s HR and IT systems.

Why we process your data

The law on data protection allows us to process your data for certain lawful reasons only.  We process your information;

• for the performance of a legal obligation e.g carrying out checks in relation to your right to work in the UK; and

• so that we can carry out activities which are in the legitimate interests of the Company e.g making decisions about who to offer employment to, making decisions about salary and other benefits, assessing training needs

If you are unsuccessful in obtaining employment, your data will not be used for any reason other than in the ways explained in relation to the specific application you have made.

Criminal conviction data

We will only collect criminal conviction data where it is appropriate given the nature of your role and where the law permits us. This data will usually be collected at the recruitment stage.

If you do not provide your data to us

One of the reasons for processing your data is to allow us to carry out an effective recruitment process. Whilst you are under no obligation to provide us with your data, we may not able to process, or continue with (as appropriate), your application.

Sharing your data

Your data will be shared with colleagues within the Company where it is necessary for them to undertake their duties with regard to recruitment. This includes, for example, the HR department, and those in the department where the vacancy is.  

In some cases, we will collect data about you from third parties, such as employment agencies.

Your data will be shared with third parties if you are successful in your job application as detailed in our Employee Privacy notice.   

Protecting your data

We are aware of the requirement to ensure your data is protected against accidental loss or disclosure, destruction and abuse. We have implemented processes to guard against such.

Where we share your data with third parties, we provide written instructions to them to ensure that your data is held securely and in line with GDPR requirements.

How long we keep your data for

We only keep your data for as long as we need it for and this will depend on whether or not you are successful in obtaining employment with us.

We will keep your data 6 months after the recruitment exercise ends. At the end of this period, we will delete or destroy your data.

If your application is successful, your data will be kept and transferred to the systems we administer for employees. We have a separate privacy notice for employees, which will be provided to you.

Automated decision making

No decision will be made about you solely on the basis of automated decision making which has a significant impact on you.

Your rights in relation to your data

The law on data protection gives you certain rights in relation to the data we hold on you. These are:

• the right to be informed. This means that we must tell you how we use your data, and this is the purpose of this privacy notice

• the right of access. You have the right to access the data that we hold on you. To do so, you should make a subject access request

• the right for any inaccuracies to be corrected. If any data that we hold about you is incomplete or inaccurate, you can require us to correct it

• the right to have information deleted. If you would like us to stop processing your data, you have the right to ask us to delete it from our systems where you believe there is no reason for us to continue processing it

• the right to restrict the processing of the data. For example, if you believe the data we hold is incorrect, we will stop processing the data (whilst still holding it) until we have ensured that the data is correct

• the right to portability. You may transfer the data that we hold on you for your own purposes

• the right to object to the inclusion of any information. You have the right to object to the way we use your data where we are using it for our legitimate interests

• the right to regulate any automated decision-making and profiling of personal data. You have a right not to be subject to automated decision making in way that adversely affects your legal rights.

Where you have provided consent to our use of your data, you also have the unrestricted right to withdraw that consent at any time. Withdrawing your consent means that we will stop processing the data that you had previously given us consent to use. There will be no consequences for withdrawing your consent. However, in some cases, we may continue to use the data where so permitted by having a legitimate reason for doing so.

If you wish to exercise any of the rights explained above, please contact the HR Department.

Making a complaint

The supervisory authority in the UK for data protection matters is the Information Commissioner (ICO). If you think your data protection rights have been breached in any way by us please let The HR Department know as soon as possible. You are also able to make a complaint to the ICO.