Anyone know about Employment Agencies and Data Protection Act?

[nannynick]

Do you work for an employment agency, or have experience in recruiting staff on behalf of someone else?

Do you know about the Data Protection Act, specifically how it relates to Employment References.

An issue has been raised over on the Childminders/Nannies board with regard to hiring a nanny via an agency. The agency has obtained written references but won't pass the content of those references to the potential employer (the agencies client).
From looking at the Data Protection Act, the subject of the references can make a request to see them (so the nanny concerned could request to see them) but the potential employer of that nanny can't. Is that right? Are there any exemptions?

If you used a recruitment agency to find you staff, would you expect to be sent candidates references... or would you consider those are confidential and are only to be accessed by the agency?

[bigspender30]

Hi there nannynick -I worked in recruitment for a few years on a temp desk (hiring temps). I would always have to take up references on these temps and the references would have to be satisfactory before finding them a placeement. I would not use any temp where the reference was just a confirmation of dates worked. I also couldn't pass on details to a third party so in answer to your question, a copy of the reference would not be sent to the employer however you should be confident that the agency has obtained good enough references to want to work with them.Hope this helps

[nannynick]

Thanks for responding. Interesting that you say you wouldn't pass it on to a third party - so that would mean that the company hiring you to find them a temp, wouldn't ever see that temp's references - and couldn't do so if they had wanted to.

In childcare, agencies in the past were to help parents - so acted for the parents in helping the parents make a recruitment decision. But these days the Data Protection Act seems to be getting in the way, leaving parents who use agencies in a tricky situation - they just have to put full faith in the agency.

[bigspender30]

there is nothing to stop the company taking their own reference-details of referees could be requested during the interview.