The Minister for Justice has activated a section of the Data Protection Act that will end an “unfair and discriminatory recruitment practice” used by some employers to access data about prospective employees. The move will prevent employers asking interviewees to make requests under the Data Protection Acts to get information from current or past employers for use as a reference.

In a letter to unions outlining the new rules, ICTU’s legal and social affairs officer Esther Lynch said some employers had been exploiting job seekers’ rights in order to vet their employment records. These data requests could include seeking records of previous sick leave, parental leave, union membership, and grievances.

“It’s easy to see how the information in the data access request could be used by unscrupulous employers to unfairly discriminate against workers,” she said.

In future, breaches by employers will incur criminal penalties, which could mean fines of up to €100,000 depending on the seriousness of the offence. A copy of the legal documentation for this new statutory instrument is available here.