Former ETC employee requests damages for data protection breach

A former ETC employee who is claiming that the corporation misused a confidential medical disclosure form, filled in for health insurance purposes, to threaten him with dismissal during his probationary period, has filed a judicial protest against the corporation, claiming damages resulting from the alleged breach of his rights under the Data Protection Act.

In the protest, filed in the First Hall of the Civil Court, David Bajada describes being asked to disclose his medical history while filling in a health insurance application at the beginning of his employment with the corporation.

He claims to have been assured that the sealed envelope containing the confidential information would only be opened by the insurance company and states that at no point did he give his consent to the envelope being opened by anyone other than the insurer - a fact accepted by the Data Protection Commissioner in a sentence delivered in September last year.

In spite of his lack of consent however, it appears that the envelope was opened by the Human Resources department at the corporation. The protest mentions an incident where the plaintiff was questioned by a department employee who claimed to be aware of the form’s contents, who also mentioned a condition that he “allegedly might have suffered from in the past”.

The employee is alleged to have then pressed Bajada for more information on the “alleged medical condition,” going on to mention his probation period “with a clear intention to intimidate.” Bajada claims to have been forced to allow the ETC’s doctor to discuss his case with his personal GP. His definite contract was not renewed.

The plaintiff claims that the resulting pressure together with the intimidation piled on him in a string of emails, led to him requiring medical treatment, as well as days of unpaid sick leave and is holding the corporation responsible for damages he suffered due to the actions of its employees.