What is a Data Subject Access Request and what does it mean for employers?

Nigel Farage, the Brexit-leading former MP turned controversial public figure, managed to create a significant media storm last week when he accused Coutts, the prestigious banking services provider and formally his own money manager, of refusing his request for a bank account for political reasons. Whatever your considerations on the politics of such a decision, Farage was able to gain arguably embarrassing information from Coutts regarding the internal conversations on his banking via a ‘DSAR’; a Data Subject Access Request. In an age where ‘data is the new oil’ (i.e. extremely valuable, not least as a trading commodity) and people…

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Hina Belitz published on Yahoo News discussing Flexible Working Bill

Our Partner Hina Belitz was thrilled to be published in this article on yahoo.com discussing the recent Private Member's Bill regarding Flexible Working that has just gone through parliament. The Bill will now become law, and introduces some interesting changes such as the right to request flexible working twice in a 12 month period. Whilst the Bill has some positive steps, it is not quite the saving grace of those seeking flexible working arrangements that it has been hailed as. Hina's comments on some of the misgivings, particularly that this is still just a right to request flexible working not…

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Can you be harassed in employment law if you weren’t aware of the harassing conduct at the time?

Harassment law is a well utilised area of employment law; its protection ensures people feel safe at work and are not subjected to unlawful conduct regarding a protected characteristic. However, it is also a tricky area of law; the construction of the law is such that a harasser can be liable for conduct that has the purpose OR the effect of creating a humiliating/offensive etc environment for an individual. In layman’s terms, this means that the individual needn’t intend to insult or offend an individual by their conduct, but that harassment could occur in any case. When considering whether a…

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Hina Belitz appears on TalkTV discussing the BBC Presenter Scandal

It's been a whirlwind few days for our Partner Hina Belitz, who was invited onto Vanessa Feltz's TalkTV show on Tuesday evening to discuss the BBC Presenter scandal and its impact on the BBC as an employer. It might be hard to remember where we were in the story at that point; we didn't have a name for the presenter (who has subsequently been revealed as BBC News' Huw Edwards) and more stories regarding other young people's relationships with the presenter were coming to light. Hina was grilled by Vanessa on questions such as the BBC's position regarding a dismissal…

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Hina on Times Radio discussing BBC Presenter Scandal

Our Partner Hina Belitz was invited this morning once again onto Times Radio, this time with Aasmah Mir and Stig Abell to discuss the most recent media personality employment scandal; the unnamed BBC presenter accused of paying £35,000 for illicit pictures of a 17 year old. Hina answered questions regarding the employment impact of the BBC's decision to suspend the employee in question, what obligations the BBC were under when they first received notice of this allegation and more. To hear Hina's take on this, please go to 1 hour 13 on this link, or watch online on youtube here. …

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