Mearns & Company collect and process personal data relating to job applicants as part of our recruitment process. We are committed to being transparent about how we collect and use that data and to meeting our data protection obligations.
This notice sets out the basis on which we collect, use and disclose the personal data of our job applicants, as well as your rights in respect of such personal data.
What information do we collect and how?
We collect a range of information about you. This includes:
We may also collect, use and process the following special categories of your personal information during the recruitment process:
We may collect this information in a variety of ways. For example, data might be contained in application forms or CVs (including when these are sent to us as part of speculative applications or queries), obtained from your passport or other identity documents, or collected through interviews or other methods of assessment.
We may also collect personal data about you from third parties, such as references supplied by former employers or criminal records checks from Disclosure Scotland. We will seek information from third parties only once a job offer has been made to you.
Data will be stored in a range of different places, including on your application record, in our HR management systems and our email system.
Why do we process personal data?
We collect and process your data for a number of purposes and where we have a legal basis to do so, as follows.
We have a legitimate interest in processing personal data during the recruitment process and for keeping records of the process. Processing data from job applicants allows us to manage the recruitment process, assess and confirm a candidate's suitability for employment and decide to whom to offer a job. We may also need to process data from job applicants to respond to and defend against legal claims.
In some cases, we need to process data to ensure that we are complying with our legal obligations. For example, we are required to check a successful applicant's eligibility to work in the UK before employment starts.
We may process information about whether or not applicants are disabled so we can make reasonable adjustments for candidates who have a disability. Where we process other special categories of data, such as information about ethnic origin, sexual orientation, health or religion or belief, this is for equal opportunities monitoring purposes. Our processing of these types of data will be carried out to ensure you or us can meet our obligations or exercise our rights under law related to employment or (only where applicable) to enable us to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.
We will not use your data for any purpose other than the recruitment process of which you are a part.
Who has access to data?
Your information may be shared internally within Mearns & Company for the purposes of the recruitment process. This includes the directors of the company, interviewers involved in the recruitment process, and managers in the business area with a vacancy.
We will not share your data with third parties, unless your application for employment is successful, and an offer of employment is made. At that stage, we may also share your personal information with third parties (and their designated agents), including:
In addition, we may need to share your personal information with a regulator or otherwise to comply with the law.
How do we protect data?
We take the security of your data seriously. We have internal policies and controls in place to ensure that your data is not lost, accidentally destroyed, misused or disclosed, and is not accessed except by our personnel in the proper performance of their duties.
Where your personal information is shared with third parties, we require all third parties to take appropriate technical and organisational security measures to protect your personal information and to treat it subject to a duty of confidentiality and in accordance with data protection law. We only allow them to process your personal information for specified purposes and in accordance with our written instructions and we do not allow them to use your personal information for their own purposes.
For how long do we keep data?
If your application for employment is unsuccessful (including when you have speculatively applied to us in respect of a role which is not available), we will hold your data on file for 6 months. At the end of that period, your data is deleted or destroyed (unless we need to retain it for longer to exercise or defend any legal claims).
We may wish to keep your personal information on file in case there are future suitable employment opportunities with us. We will ask for your consent before we keep your personal information on file for this purpose. Your consent can be withdrawn at any time.
If your application for employment is successful, personal data gathered during the recruitment process will be transferred to your personnel file and retained during your employment. The periods for which employee data is held will be provided to you in a separate privacy notice.
Your rights
As a data subject, you have a number of rights under data protection law. You can:
If you would like to exercise any of these rights or if you have any questions about this notice or our processing of your data more generally, please contact Graeme Brown, our director with responsibility for data security, graemebrown@mearnscompany.com.
Anchor House, 112 Commercial Street, Edinburgh, EH6 6NF.
0131 554 771
We may need to request specific information from you in order to verify your identity and check your right to access the personal information or to exercise any of your other rights. This is a security measure to ensure that your personal information is not disclosed to any person who has no right to receive it.
If you believe that we have not complied with your data protection rights, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (https://ico.org.uk/).
Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Helpline number: 0303 123 1113
What if you do not provide personal data?
You are under no statutory or contractual obligation to provide data to us during the recruitment process. However, if you do not provide the information, we may not be able to process your application.
The table below summarises the personal information we collect and hold during the recruitment process, how and why we do so, how we use it and whom it may be shared with.
| The information we collect | How we collect the information | Why we collect the information (including legitimate interest) | How we use and may share the information |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your name, contact details (including emergency contact), other employment records ** | From you | FRP, Progress | Progress, Shared with Personnel |
| Details of your academic history qualifications, experience, employment history (including job titles, salary and working hours) and interests | From you, in the completed application form and interview notes (if relevant) | FRP, Informed | Progress, Shared with Personnel |
| Equal opportunities monitoring information including your racial or ethnic origin, sex and sexual orientation, religious or similar beliefs | From you | LO, SPI | SPI |
| Information regarding your criminal record | From you | LO, SPI | Informed To carry out statutory checks Information shared with Personnel, Disclosure Scotland and other regulatory authorities as required |
| Details of your referees | From you | FRP LO: to obtain regulatory references | FRP Information shared with Personnel and the referee |
| Your nationality and immigration status and information from related documents (e.g. passport) ** | From you, the Home Office (if required) | PTC, GEP, LO | To carry out right to work checks Share: Personnel, the Home Office (if required) |
| Medical, sickness and absence records (including sensitive personal information regarding your physical and/or mental health) ** | From you, Medical Professionals, any insurance benefit administrators | LO & SPI | Share: Personnel, Medical Professionals, any insurance benefit administrators* |
Key to table
FRP – to carry out a fair recruitment process
GEP – to maintain employment records and for good employment practice
Informed - to make an informed decision to shortlist for interview and (if relevant) to recruit
Insurance - to comply with the terms of our insurance
LO – to ensure compliance with legal and/or regulatory obligations
Medical Professional – your doctors and other medical/occupational health professionals
PTC – to enter into/perform the contract
Personnel – relevant managers, HR, professional advisors, payroll and consultants
Progress - to progress your application, arrange interviews and inform you of the outcome at all stages
SPI - for reasons of substantial public interest (e.g. equality opportunities and prevention and/or detection of unlawful acts)
* - You are required (by law or in order to enter into your contract of employment) to provide the categories of information marked ** in the table above to us to enable us to verify your right to work and suitability for the position.
Anchor House
112 Commercial Street
Edinburgh
EH6 6NF
© Mearns & Company
Registered in Scotland, Company Number: SC288945
Mearns & Company are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (reference number 465557)
The guidance and / or advice contained within this website is subject to the UK regulatory regime and is therefore targeted at consumers based in the UK