Job Application Privacy Notice
This privacy notice has been produced as part of MCF’s approach to the implementation of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). It describes how we collect and use personal information about you during and after the recruitment process, in accordance with the GDPR.
MCF is committed to protecting your privacy and this notice explains how we use information about you and how we protect your privacy. This notice is also one of the ways in which we demonstrate that we are operating at all times in an open and transparent way.
The GDPR applies to the processing of personal data operating within the EU. The GDPR applies to personal data meaning any information relating to an identifiable person who can be directly or indirectly identified in particular by reference to an identifier.
MCF is the data controller for the information you provide during the process unless otherwise stated. If you have any queries about the process or how we handle your information please contact us at hr@rmbi.org.uk.
MCF has a Data Protection Lead who can be contacted at bnurse@mcf.org.uk to oversee compliance with this privacy notice. If you have any questions about this privacy notice or how we handle your personal information please contact the Data Protection Lead.
Data Protection Principles
We will comply with data protection law and principles, which means that your data will be:
- Used lawfully, fairly and in a transparent way.
- Collected only for valid purposes that we have clearly explained to you and not used in any way that is incompatible with those purposes.
- Relevant to the purposes we have told you about and limited only to those purposes.
- Accurate and kept up to date.
- Kept only as long as necessary for the purposes we have told you about.
- Kept securely.
The kind of information we hold about you
In connection with your application for work with us, we will collect, store, and use the following categories of personal information about you:
- The information you have provided to us in your curriculum vitae and covering letter.
- The information you have provided on our application form, including name, title, address, telephone number, personal email address, date of birth, gender, employment history, education and qualifications, right to work status, and referee details
- Any information you provide to us during an interview.
- Any information you provide as part of your responses to tests and written or practical exercises
We may also collect, store and use the following types of more sensitive personal information:
- Information about your race or ethnicity, religious, philosophical or similar beliefs, sexual orientation and political opinions.
- Information about your physical and mental health, including any medical condition, health and sickness records.
- Information about criminal convictions, offences or related proceedings.
How is your personal information collected?
We collect personal information about candidates from the following sources:
- You, the candidate.
- Recruitment agencies, from which we collect the following categories of data:
- Your curriculum vitae and covering letter
- Name, title, address, telephone number, personal email address
- Referee details
- References (where applicant has worked through the recruitment agency on a temporary assignment)
- uCheck background check provider, from which we collect the following categories of data:
- Your DBS status
- Your named referees, from whom we collect the following categories of data:
- Dates of employment
- Position held at date of leaving
- Reason for leaving
- Working relationship of referee to applicant
- A general assessment on timekeeping and attendance, team working, reliability and overall quality of work
- Sickness absence over the last 12 month period
- Does the referee consider the applicant suitable for the job offered
- Would the referee re-employ
What will we do with the information you provide to us?
We will be processing your data for the legitimate interest of MCF.
All of the information you provide during the process will only be used for the purpose of progressing your application, or to fulfil legal or regulatory requirements where necessary.
We will use the personal information we collect about you to:
- Assess your skills, qualifications, and suitability for the work or role
- Carry out background and reference checks, where applicable.
- Communicate with you about the recruitment process.
- Keep records related to our hiring processes.
- Comply with legal or regulatory requirements.
It is in our legitimate interests to decide whether to appoint you to the role or work since it would be beneficial to our business to appoint someone to that role or work.
We also need to process your personal information to decide whether to enter into a contract of employment or contract for services with you.
Having received your CV and covering letter / your application form and the results from the test which you took, we will then process that information to decide whether you meet the basic requirements to be shortlisted for the role. If you do, we will decide whether your application is strong enough to invite you for an interview. If we decide to call you for an interview, we will use the information you provide to us at the interview to decide whether to offer you the role or work. If we decide to offer you the role or work, we will then take up references before confirming your appointment.
We will not share any of the information you provide during the recruitment process with any third parties for marketing purposes or store any of your information outside of the European Economic Area. The information you provide will be held securely by us and/or our data processors whether the information is in electronic or physical format.
We will use the contact details you provide to us to contact you to progress your application. We will use the other information you provide to assess your suitability for the role you have applied for.
Where you have provided your consent to do so we will also use the information you provide to assess your suitability for alternative roles within MCF.
What information do we ask for, and why?
We do not collect more information than we need to fulfil our stated purposes and will not retain it for longer than is necessary.
The information we ask for is used to assess your suitability for employment. If you fail to provide information when requested, which is necessary for us to consider your application (such as evidence of qualifications or work history), we will not be able to process your application successfully. For example, if we require references for this role and you fail to provide us with relevant details, we will not be able to take your application further.
Application Stage
We ask you for your personal details including name and contact details. We will also ask about your previous experience, education, referees and for answers to questions relevant to the role you have applied for. Our Home Management team and Human Resources Department will have access to all of this information.
Shortlisting
Our hiring managers shortlist applications for interview.
Assessments
We might ask you to participate in assessments, complete tests or occupational personality profile questionnaires and/or attend an interview – or a combination of these. Information will be generated by you and by us. This information is held by MCF with the exception of our online assessments where information is collected by a data processor (CEB) on our behalf.
If you are invited to participate in an assessment you will be required to provide evidence of your right to work in the United Kingdom. You will therefore need to provide documentation in line with the current list of acceptable documents produced by the Home Office.
You may also be required to provide proof of your identity and proof of your qualifications as part of the assessment process.
Conditional Offer
If we make a conditional offer of employment we will ask you for information so that we can carry out pre-employment checks. You must successfully complete pre-employment checks to start employment with us. We are required to confirm the identity of our staff, their DBS status (for applicable roles), their right to work in the United Kingdom and seek assurance as to their trustworthiness, integrity and reliability.
You will therefore be required to provide:
- Proof of your identity – you will be asked to attend one of our locations with original documents where we will take copies.
- Proof of your qualifications – you will be asked to attend one of our locations with original documents where we will take copies.
- Where applicable, you will be asked to complete a DBS application using the online application system, this will be received by a data processor (uCheck) on our behalf.
- Where applicable, you will be asked to provide supporting documents for your DBS application – you will be asked to attend one of our locations with original documents, we will take copies and we will share such information as is necessary with uCheck in order to complete the DBS check.
- We will contact your referees directly using the details you provide in your application to obtain references.
- We will also ask you to complete a questionnaire about your health. This is to establish your fitness to undertake the work. The information will be shared with a data processor (Absence Management Solutions).
How We Use Particularly Sensitive Personal Information
We will use your particularly sensitive personal information in the following ways:
- We will use information about your disability status to consider whether we need to provide appropriate adjustments during the recruitment process, for example whether reasonable adjustments need to be made during a test or interview, and if you are offered a role whether any reasonable adjustments are required.
- We will use information about your race or national or ethnic origin, religious, philosophical or moral beliefs, or your sexual life or sexual orientation, to ensure meaningful equal opportunity monitoring and reporting.
Use of data processors
Data processors are third parties who provide elements of our recruitment service for us. We have contracts in place with our data processors. This means that they cannot do anything with your personal information unless we have instructed them to do it. They will not share your personal information with any organisation apart from us. They will hold it securely and retain it for the period we instruct.
uCheck
uCheck provide our DBS checking service. If we make a conditional offer, we will ask you to complete a DBS application. We will provide uCheck with the data required to enable them to complete the check. We may ask you to log onto the uCheck system to provide additional data to them directly, where you do this the data will be held by uCheck.
Absence Management Solutions (AMS)
AMS provide our Occupational Health service. If we make a conditional offer, we will ask that you complete a health questionnaire which will help to determine if you are fit to undertake the work that you have been offered, or advise us if any adjustments are needed to the work environment or systems so that you may work effectively.
If you declare any medical conditions we will provide AMS with a copy of your health questionnaire. The information will be held by AMS who will provide us with a fitness to work report along with any recommendations. If an occupational health assessment is required, this is likely to be carried out by AMS
CEB
CEB provide online testing for us. If we ask you to complete one of these tests, we will send you a link to the test. Your answers will be held by CEB and used to create a report which will be provided to us.
Recruitment Agencies
We will on occasions engage a recruitment agency to support our candidate search. We will provide a copy of this privacy notice to all recruitment agencies working on campaigns with us and ask that they provide all candidates with a copy. We will process the personal data we are provided in accordance with this notice.
How long is the information retained for?
If you are successful, the information you provide during the application process will be retained by us as part of your employee file for the duration of your employment plus six years following the end of your employment.
If you are unsuccessful at any stage of the process, the information you have provided until that point will be retained for six months from the closure of the campaign or the date you were informed of the decision, whichever is later. This would also apply if you choose to withdraw from the process at any stage.
Proof of identity documents and proof of eligibility to work documents will be destroyed immediately upon notification of the decision for any unsuccessful or withdrawn applicants.
Where you have provided your consent the information you have provided will be retained in our candidate pool for six months from the date of application and you will be assessed for your suitability for alternative roles.
Information generated during the assessment process, for example interview notes, will be retained by us for six months from the closure of the campaign or the date you were informed of the decision, whichever is later.
If you are unsuccessful, right to work information gathered during the assessment process will be immediately destroyed from the closure of the campaign or the date you were informed of the decision, whichever is later.
How we make decisions about recruitment
Final recruitment decisions are made by hiring managers and members of the Human Resources Department. All the information gathered during the application process is taken into account.
CEB testing is marked and a result is generated automatically. However, you can challenge the result and should contact the recruiting manager in the first instance to discuss this. Hiring decisions will never be made as a result of the CEB testing results in isolation.
You are able to ask about decisions made about your application by speaking directly to your contact or by emailing hr@rmbi.org.uk. This should be done as soon as possible after you have been informed of the decision.
Your rights
You have the right to be forgotten. At any time you can therefore request, in writing, that your personal data be removed from our systems. Please note that if you are made an offer by MCF, or you commence employment with us, then we retain the right to decline any request to be forgotten, as we may need to retain your personal data for either the performance of the employment contract or for the legitimate interests of the MCF.
You may withdraw your consent to be included in our candidate pool or to be assessed for your suitability for alternative roles within MCF at any time.
Where we hold personal information about you, you also have a right to access your personal information, to object to the processing of your personal information, to correct any mistakes in your personal information, to restrict and to port your personal information.
Should you wish to exercise your rights in any way please submit your request in writing to bnurse@mcf.org.uk
Complaints or queries
MCF tries to meet the highest standards when collecting and using personal information. For this reason, we take any complaints we receive about this very seriously. We encourage people to bring it to our attention if they think that our collection or use of information is unfair, misleading or inappropriate.
If you wish to make a complaint about the way we have processed your personal information in the first instance please contact bnurse@mcf.org.uk
If you remain dissatisfied then you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Please note that this only applies when your complaint or query relates to how we have processed your personal data. If you have a complaint or query in relation to the recruitment process you should contact the hiring manager directly.
Additional Supporting Documents & Policies
Data Protection Policy
Privacy Notice – Current and Former MCF Employees