Does anyone want to complain to the BBC about their application forms?

[VelvetChairGirl]

Heres some screen shots of the parts of the online application form.

Those are both questions to be answered prefer not to say. But also I believe they are not GDPR compliant as they have no legal need to hold that data.

I've just had to fill that in for some freelance work .. I just ticked Prefer not to say.

@WorkingItOutAsIGo

Those are both questions to be answered prefer not to say. But also I believe they are not GDPR compliant as they have no legal need to hold that data.

The fact you have a "prefer not to say" option makes this GDPR compliant. If you don't want them to hold this data about you, you pick that option.

I don’t see why this isn’t GDPR compliant? You don’t have to answer. And as long as they hold the data securely (I’d categorise as sensitive personal data) and only use it in the way they say (usually for equality monitoring if it’s a job application). That’s my understanding anyway.

Presumably it's for equalities monitoring. My work has gone similar, I've raised the issue that they're no longer monitoring the sex of applicants and my concerns were dismissed because it was changed in line with someone else's policy

I thought you were assigned a sex at birth, not a gender?

(Of course in reality it's all decided at the point of conception).

I recently had this in a staff survey and chose the 'Prefer not to say' option. It will be interesting to see the numbers who also chose this option when the results come out.

I stand corrected if the opt out means it is GDPR compliant. That’s why I caveated what I said - I had thought they are allowed to hold personal data only for the purposes of equality monitoring, and therefore it needs to match the protected characteristics. Since there is no legal characteristic of gender or gender assigned at birth, then holding that data is not permitted. That’s what I thought, anyway.

I disagree with the ‘prefer not to say option’ too as it suggests that I agree the question is a reasonable one and of course if you don’t believe in gender, and know that Sex is observed at or before birth, then these questions are nonsensical and I resent being forced to answer them as though they had meaning or validity.

these questions are nonsensical and I resent being forced to answer them as though they had meaning or validity.

Exactly. Where’s the space for my star sign or favourite colour? Is gender ‘identity’ even a protected characteristic anyway? It was always meant to be the whole ‘reassignment’ thing, with a GRC.