As an employer, it is essential to understand the current GDPR and data protection laws.
From protecting customer and employee data, to delivering training to avoid online data breaches, falling behind can lead to severe financial and reputational consequences for the individuals involved. As technology and legislation evolve, so do employer responsibilities.
Our experienced team of business employment solicitors in London can help you navigate this complex and changing area of law, ensuring you and your employees comply with UK rules.
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If you are an employer needing urgent legal advice about data protection, we can help you:
- Identify data breaches and respond quickly
- Understand and minimise the damage caused
- Prevent future data breaches at your workplace
- Liaise with the Information Commission’s Office
Speak to an experienced lawyer today for clear and confidential advice tailored to employers.
What is the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)?
The GDPR (together with the Data Protection Act 2018) controls how organisations collect, use and store the personal information of individuals (including employees). The GDPR applies to all businesses operating in the European Economic Area as well as businesses outside which offer goods or services to people based in the Area. In the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is the regulatory body that deals with compliance with the GDPR.
There are seven principles of the GDPR that businesses should seek to follow:
- Lawfulness, fairness and transparency: You must collect, use and store all personal data legally and fairly. You must also publish a privacy notice detailing how you use individuals’ data.
- Purpose limitations: You must only use the data, that you hold, in the way outlined within your privacy notice (or for new purposes that are compatible with your privacy notice).
- Data minimisation: You must only collect, and store, data that is relevant and necessary for those purposes that are set out in your privacy notice.
- Accuracy: You must ensure that data is correct when you collect it, and kept up-to-date, whilst in storage. You must also delete any incorrect, and out-of-date, data.
- Storage limitation: You should only keep data for as long as it is necessary for those purposes outlined in your privacy notice. You must securely destroy data once it’s no longer needed.
- Integrity and confidentiality: You must store all data in a confidential and secure manner.
- Accountability: You must document how you comply with the other six principles through policies and procedures.
Why is Data Protection & GDPR Important?
Employers hold more personal information than ever before. Recruitment records, personnel files, sickness data, performance reviews, monitoring logs and more.
Data protection law is strict, and the consequences are serious. Get it wrong, and you’re looking at regulatory scrutiny, financial penalties, and reputational damage that may take years to undo. Employee complaints are increasingly common too, particularly if people feel their personal information hasn’t been handled with care.
TV Edwards’ employment solicitors work with businesses to make sense of their obligations under UK GDPR and wider data protection legislation.
Whether you need help reviewing existing procedures, understanding what you can lawfully collect, or managing a specific concern, we offer straightforward, practical advice that protects both your business and the people whose data you hold.
Managing Employee Data as an Employer
Company data often includes sensitive personal information about employees.
Employers should have clear procedures governing how information is collected, stored, shared, and deleted. This is particularly important when dealing with:
- Medical information and occupational health records
- Diversity and equality monitoring
- Background checks
- Flexible working requests
- Disciplinary investigations
- Hybrid and remote working arrangements
As technology changes, employers should regularly review their data protection practices to ensure they remain compliant with current legislation and guidance.
Data Breaches and Employer Risk
A data breach is the leaking or unlawful accessing of personal data records held, and maintained, by a business. A data breach may be accidental or due to intentional criminal activity.
It may be something as small as an email being sent to the wrong person, or a large scale system hack of an organisation’s entire server.
Whatever your circumstances, data breaches can have far-reaching consequences and, in many cases, they can affect the security of the individuals involved (which, at worst, could lead to identity theft or access to bank accounts).
Regardless of what individuals are affected by a data breach, it should be treated with utmost seriousness and dealt with as quickly as possible to limit any effects.
The ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) has the power to investigate data breaches and issue fines. Affected individuals can raise complaints or pursue compensation, and the reputational damage from a breach can be severe.
What to Do in the Event of a Data Breach
In the event of a data breach, you must act quickly as businesses have 72 hours to report the breach to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). Failing this, the business can incur a maximum fine of up to £8.7 million or 4% of the business’s yearly turnover – whichever is highest.
Following a notification to the ICO, businesses should seek to cooperate with the ICO to identify the cause of the data breach, to recover any information lost and to take steps to prevent further data breaches. The ICO will assist in conducting the investigation, but it is the business’s responsibility to seek to reduce the impact of the breach on the parties whose data was leaked, and to improve its security.
Should you be in the position of identifying a data breach, we can provide swift advice to you as to your immediate obligations (including reporting to the ICO), as to any notification obligations within regulated sectors and assist you in dealing with the reputational impact of the breach.
Related Employment Services
How Our Employment Solicitors Can Help
Our solicitors advise businesses on a wide range of data protection and GDPR matters.
We can:
- Advise on UK GDPR and Data Protection Act compliance
- Review employment contracts, policies, and privacy notices
- Assist with employee data requests
- Advise on workplace monitoring and surveillance
- Support businesses following data breaches
- Help manage employee complaints relating to personal data
- Provide risk-management and compliance advice
Our goal is to help employers protect sensitive information, reduce legal risks, and maintain confidence among employees and customers.
Why Choose TV Edwards?
- Recognised legal expertise – ranked in Legal 500 and Chambers UK for quality legal advice
- Practical support for employers – clear guidance on workplace compliance and regulatory obligations
- Specialist employment law experience – advising businesses on GDPR, employee data, workplace policies, and risk management
- Proactive problem-solvers – helping employers identify risks before they become disputes
- Straightforward advice – complex regulations explained in plain English
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Data Protection and GDPR FAQs
What employee data can an employer legally collect?
There is no fixed list of what employee data an employee can collect, but the guiding principle is necessity. If you can justify why you need it for employment purposes and you have a lawful basis for collecting it, you should be compliant. Contact details, payroll information, and performance records are fairly standard. Employee health data sits in a more sensitive category and requires additional justification.
What are an employer’s responsibilities under GDPR?
An employer’s responsibilities under GDPR are that data needs to be collected lawfully, stored securely, kept accurate, and not held for longer than necessary. Employees also have a right to know how their personal information is being used, which means having privacy notices that explain things clearly rather than burying the detail in legal language. Preventing unauthorised access is also a core obligation.
What should an employer do after a data breach?
Employers should investigate a data breach immediately, assess the risks to affected individuals, and take steps to contain any further exposure. In some cases, the data breach may legally need to be reported to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) within 72 hours and affected individuals may also need to be informed.
Can employers monitor employees under GDPR?
Yes, employers can monitor employees under GDPR, but any monitoring must be lawful, proportionate, and transparent. The key is having a written policy that explains what’s being monitored, why, and what happens with the information collected.
What are the consequences of breaching GDPR?
Breaches of data protection and GDPR law can lead to regulatory investigations, action, financial penalties, and reputational damage for employers. The impact can be particularly significant where sensitive employee or customer data has been leaked.
