Who we are

Northern Ireland Water Ltd, (NI Water) including Northern Ireland Water Alpha Ltd (NIWA), is the sole provider of public water and sewerage services in Northern Ireland. We are a non-departmental public body (NDPB) and a Government-Owned Company (or CoCo), established in April 2007 and for the purposes of data protection, we are the ‘data controller’ for any of your personal data processed as a new employee of the Company.

For NI Water to manage your employment (whether temporary or permanent, directly employed, or recruited from an Agency), we need to collect, store and use your personal information. This is legally known as "processing personal data".

NI Water may require the services of external third parties to process your personal data on our behalf. These companies are referred to as ‘data processors’. Any data processor NI Water uses also have their own legal responsibility for handling your data.

 

Lawful Processing

NI Water’s lawful basis for processing will vary, dependent upon why we need this. For example much of what we require in the recruitment process is required for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest or in the exercise of official authority i.e. in our employment role as the sole provider of public water and sewerage services in Northern Ireland. In some cases NI Water will also need to process job application data to ensure we are complying with our legal obligations, for our or your own legitimate interests, or, for Special Category (sensitive) personal information, on the basis of Employment, social security and social protection (if authorised by law).

 

What personal information are we collecting

NI Water will collect a range of information about you, including:

• your name, address and contact details, including email address and telephone number.
• details of your qualifications, skills, experience and employment history.
• information about your current level of remuneration, which may include benefit entitlements.
• whether or not you have a disability, so that we can make reasonable adjustments, as required; and
• information about your entitlement to work in the UK etc.

 

How do we collect personal data?

As a new employee, NI Water will collect personal information from you and about you by application form, through forms of assessment, from interview, or from your identity documents. NI Water may also collect personal data about you from third parties, such as references, but we will only seek this information if you have been recommended for appointment to the post and we will inform you that we are doing this.

In your wider employment with the Company, NI Water will also lawfully collect your personal information in a variety of ways including when processing official documentation (paper or electronic) e.g. emails, forms, etc., personal data held on various systems e.g. Oracle etc., site security photographic ID cards, overt CCTV, financial information used in payroll and expense claims, personnel files including recruitment information, personal data including the potential to capture special category data (health/injury) gathered in investigating health and safety incidents and accidents surveys, special category information processed by NI Water or its Suppliers e.g. Inspire and Independent Occupational Health in relation to employee wellbeing and health, external engagement initiatives, through the voluntary completion of diversity and inclusion information which will assist NI Water in understanding the make-up of our workforce, or when any of our partners lawfully collect information on our behalf, etc.

 

Who we share your personal information with and why

NI Water uses a range of organisations and suppliers either to store personal information or to help us deliver our services to you. Where we have these arrangements, there is always a legal agreement in place to make sure the organisation or supplier complies with data protection legislation.

 

Access

Who sees or has access to your personal information will depend on why we need to process it, but on all occasions this access should be on a business “Need to know” basis only.

 

Changes to this Privacy Notice

We continually review and update this Privacy Notice to reflect changes in our services as well as to comply with changes in data protection legislation. We would therefore encourage you to review this Notice on a regular basis.

 

Storing & sharing your personal information

Your personal data will be stored in the UK and will be shared internally within NI Water with staff who are involved in the recruitment process and, where necessary, between internal departments for the purpose of ensuring a fair, systematic and objective recruitment and selection process is in place.

It may also be shared with external consultants where appropriate. Your personal data will not be shared or disclosed to any other organisation without your consent unless the law permits or places an obligation on NI Water to do so.

It will be held and stored by NI Water in a safe and secure manner in compliance with Data Protection legislation and in line with NI Water’s Records Retention and Disposal Schedule.

 

Your rights

As a data subject, you have several individual rights. These include, but are not exclusive to your right to:

• access and obtain a copy of your personal data on request;
• where your consent is the lawful basis for processing, the right to withdraw your consent;
• prevent any wholly automated decisions involving your data. This right exists, but NI Water does not use any wholly automated decision-making techniques;
• require NI Water to change incorrect or incomplete personal job applicant data; and
• require NI Water to delete or restrict processing your data (where we do not have a legal or contractual obligation to process).

 

Complaints or concerns

If you have any concerns about NI Water’s handling of your personal data, you can raise these with NI Water’s Data Protection Officer, John Collins directly via imu[AT]niwater[DOT]com.

You also have a right to make a complaint directly to the Information Commissioner.

See their website: www.ico.org.uk

NI Water has notified its processing of personal data to and is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (Z9774154).

https://ico.org.uk/esdwebpages/search