2015

Following the EU Parliament vote adopting the amendments to the draft EU General Data Protection Regulation, DataGuidance organised a webinar entitled Reshaping Global Privacy: The EU Parliament Vote, which took place on 31 October 2013. Some of the key takeaways included: Higher sanctions are on the horizon; The role of the DPO will be key; Safe Harbor likely to stay; Framework to be revised; and Wait for trilogue to ascertain the fate of BSPRs.

Christopher Wolf, Partner at Hogan Lovells, explained that while the extent of penalties has been outlined, there remains a lack of guidance as to mitigating factors or discretion for enforcement. Emmanuelle Bartoli, Group Chief Legal Counsel, Data Privacy and Security at Atos, spoke on the central role of the DPO, despite little definition in the draft Regulation. Both Bartoli and Wolf discussed the hope that Binding Safe Processor Rules, not explicitly mentioned in the Parliament's amendments, will re-emerge in the trilogue discussions with the Council and the Commission. "If the BCR for processors idea is extinguished you are losing an important mechanism for international trade and for another way to protect data as it used and shared in the information society ecosystem,” said Wolf. “I hope that greater rationality will prevail in trilogue."

All Australian government-funded construction sites now require contractors to have a comprehensive fitness-for-work policy that includes mandatory drug and alcohol testing.

The amendments apply to all new and existing projects after October 16, 2015, where the Commonwealth has contributed at least A$5 million and 50% of project value or at least A$10 million towards the project. But drug testing is not associated with deterring people from taking drugs, so why do we do it?

Employed people are more likely than unemployed people to drink at risky levels. Plus, workers in the building and construction industry have a higher rate of use of some drugs than the general population. To be effective a workplace policy needs to be part of a broader healthy workplace solution that considers drug and alcohol use, mental health, fatigue and other impacts on fitness for work. Workplaces with effective drug and alcohol policies have happier, healthier and more productive staff and reduced absenteeism.

Employers in Indonesia regularly carry out background checks on applicants. Background checks are not expressly regulated by Indonesian employment laws, and certain background checks are subject to the consent of the applicant in practice.

The most common background checks involve those on an applicant's educational credentials, employment history and professional licenses, which, in practice, are usually provided voluntarily by the applicant. Any checks undertaken must be appropriate and proportionate to the position being applied for and must not discriminate or discourage people from applying.

There are no specific privacy or data protection requirements under Indonesian employment laws for employers who want to obtain criminal records, school records or employment or financial information of employees or potential employees. However, Indonesia has enacted various laws relating to data privacy in a number of areas.