Holding Personal Hospital Letter On Your File At Work?!

[scruffbag]

Good morning everyone,
Is your employer allowed to photocopy a hospital letter, from your consultant and keep it on your work’s personal file?!
This letter has personal information on it about me.
Many thanks in advance.

[eve1974]

I don’t know the law but ... I doubt it! Unless it was a private hospital that they had paid for you to be seen?

[barry1010]

In what circumstances did your employer get possession of the letter?

[scruffbag]

Thanks x

[scruffbag]

I have a hospital appointment in works time, so took my letter into work to show my employer.
He wanted to photocopy it and keep it on my file.
The letter has a lot of personal information on it.
Thanks.

[barry1010]

Is it related to your employment in any way? Does it recommend, for example, that you must not do heavy lifting because you have a hernia or slipped disc?
Does it explain a prolonged absence from work?

[fiction-factory]

You could ask the employer to destroy it now or let you cut out everything except the data and time if they need to keep something (although I'm not sure why). Next time just show a redacted letter

[scruffbag]

No, the letter is not related to my employment in anyway.
Thanks

[barry1010]

Did he ask your permission to photocopy and keep it?

[scruffbag]

No

[barry1010]

All you can is ask that he remove it from your file, scruffbag. If he refuses you can then think what to do about it.

[MallyJ]

Check it out with your union....they ill be able to contact your employer to tell them to destroy the letter....or to hand it back to you.

[bednobs]

you must have given it to him for him to photocopy - you therefore gave consent didnt you?
As above, either ask for it to be removed or redacted

[Peter Pedant]

// you must have given it to him for him to photocopy - you therefore gave consent didnt you?// nope that is NOT th elaw

has he got a copy ?
or did he want to take a copy?

either way write and ask that IF he has a copy he destroy it

[chelle7272]

At our work we give paid time off for hospital appointments, so we ask for an appointment letter for the personnel file as evidence the appointment is genuine. If there is more information on there than you want them to have, give them a copy with the personal info redacted instead.

[Mozz71]

Ask you employer to edit out the personal information with a black marker, photocopy.it again and destroy the original. That way he has a proof of your appointment on file but is not holding any personal information.

[scruffbag]

Many thanks for your help and kindness xx