Drivers in need of help and a warning to other drivers !!

[nobodies hero]

At Wolverhampton we are being given an online drivers risk assessment, as are all emplyee's who drive for rm.

With this there is a letter asking the employee to give up the data protection act so a third party company can contact the dvla and get information about the employee and give this information to there agents...

Even after leaving the company they will still collect data about the employee from the dvla until the individual writes to the third party and tells them to stop !

All drivers so far have refused to sign this letter.

There is talk we will be taken off driving for refusing to sign !!

Any advice grateful,
and be aware to all those who drive the vans read the letter very carefully....

[apple]

do you know who the third party is?

[nobodies hero]

intelligent data systems limited, i have looked on there website and they have no privacy code at all.

[DGP1]

Let them take you off driving duties, there are only so many walk/bike duties that they can have.

I'm not doing the online test and I'm not bringing my licence in (they have already seen it once) because I'm looking off driving duties.

[apple]

just got this from the site mentioned, for everyones info, seems to effect people that use there own cars as well

DataCheckâ„¢ Driver Verification

As an employer, you have an obligation to demonstrate that you have taken reasonable and practicable precautions to ensure the safety of employees and others whilst your drivers are on the road. You should also exercise the same obligations over any person who is allowed to drive a company vehicle other than the driver, and those employees who use their own vehicles on company related business.

DataCheckâ„¢, designed by IDS, is a secure on line driving licence verification service designed to remove the administrative burden and deliver rigorous and thorough checks, supported by a highly sophisticated management reporting infrastructure.

Learn more about the advantages of DataCheckâ„¢ and speak to a representative.

DataCheckâ„¢ Features

DataCheckâ„¢ will:

Confirm your employee (or nominated driver) holds a valid driving licence
Provide on line management reports confirming:
Driving licence number
Categories of vehicle the employee is entitled to drive
Any current convictions / endorsements / previous bans
“At riskâ€

[nobodies hero]

I think i will also come off the driving as well, it's all and good until the pass all your private data onto there agents (who ever they are) and who are the agents going to sell it on to that's the question ????

[POSTMAN]

Where's the rep/area in all this,i've never heard of this and usually on here we hear almost everything.

[nobodies hero]

Our union rep has no idea what to do, he has phoned birmingham and they are having the same problem so he says

[k979aaa]

For how can we trust them with our data with thier track record on our pension / pay and modernization agreement / the way forward agreement!. AND THAT'S BEFORE TELEMATRY IN VAN'S / HANDHELD'S / AND BANKED ANNUAL HOUR'S!. I SAY NO !. :cfo & :lfo

[POSTMAN]

If this hasn't been agreed with HQ then it's a no no.
Your rep and the others need to start making some more phone calls me thinks.

[andy2007]

It seems to me, that if you ALL refuse to sign, then they will have to give in. They can't possibly get enough Agency Drivers to cover EVERY Driving Duty in RM at short notice.

Obviously, they have to run checks on Drivers. But the Data Protection Act is there for very good reasons, and it's insane to expect all of you to give up your Legal Rights like this. Who knows where the Data could end up, or what inaccuracies may creep in. The Act doesn't only restrict the distribution of your Data. It also gives you the Legal right to examine ANY Data stored about you on Computer, for a nominal fee. I'm not sure how much that is, these days, but it's not much.

[DGP1]

RM know I have a licence and that's all they need to know and if they don't trust me then they should remove me from driving duties (and the same for everyone else).

The other problem is that those people who cannot drive are going to be excluded from this which is unfair for drivers.

[5030berty]

[andy2007]

I have never read so much tosh in my life. This business provides our livelyhood, our employer, like all decent businesses need to verify our driving credentials. To talk about all drivers refusing, ok lets do this, and lets all face dismissal, because I for one know there is not enough walking duties to do this.

I am also concerned about telematery, but for no other reason, other than its new equipment (change). All our competitors use them, so why are we different.

I am also concerned about flexibility, but for no other reason, other than its doing things differently. Why shouldn't we flex to meet mail patterns. I can't understand why this is not what we do anyway.

Yesterday at 18:00, DHL delivered my new phone, great I was in, I had a chat with him, he said, he was working 10 hours that day, he was on less pay than we are, didn't have a great pension, and sick leave pay was a pitance, yet we complain.

Last night my shopping was delivered by tescos at 10pm, great, because I had booked this the day before, but could Royal Mail do similar things, I doubt it if some of the comments on here are representative of the place we work.

Please people lets wake up, things are changing all around us, if we don't, maybe we will be privatised with TNT signs over our DO's but I think we are at risk of dying as a business. Change is difficult but if you think Phase 2 is difficult, then as employees we have a long way to go because phase 3 & 4 are just the beginning.

Our office has agreed phase 2 and has a summer efficiency agreement, we will get our £400. We are also due a return of approx £200 from 50/50. This tells me that working with our employer clearly helps and delivers cash.

It is possible for them to verify that we have valid Driving Licenses, without giving up our protection under the Data Protection Act. To give up that protection simply to make their jobs easier, would be short sighted and irresponsible.

Obviously, there are people who have more than one copy of their Driving License, in case they get points or a ban. But the validity of our Licenses can be verified, without giving up our data protection rights to a third party!

As for flexibility and Telemetry: I can't find a single reference (other than yours) to either of these things in this Thread, so I'm a little confused about your attitude.

[jemima]

Well, I don't mind RM checking my licence directly with the DVLA. But I DO mind if my data including driving licence number etc will be available for release by a third party, over the internet, to anyone who happens to know the RM username and password! I haven't been asked to sign anything yet though.