Employer access to medical information

So what can employers ask you? Quite a lot actually!

For example I have had questionnaires that ask (I am working on a way of getting a sample form online) if you have ever had emotional problems, had diarrhoea, vomiting, dysentery, food poising and any other medical problems. In other words if you have seen a GP/nurse for something, you must declare it directly to the employer and anyone else that handles the form. You also have to supply ‘details’ for each thing. Even if the employer does not misuse the above info (we all know this happens) and does not tell anyone (again we all know this happens), I for one think asking those sorts of questions is bang out of order and the CO-OP should not be asking them.

What happens after you start? Well think about it. If you had to declare this sort of info before starting, they will most likely want to know it after you start, so no way to get help with emotional problems or anything else without telling the boss. I for one think that is bang out of order. I am all for employers knowing if you are capable of doing the job, but that in no way should allow them to know our medical info. The Job? Stacking shelves and serving customers at a shop in Bucksburn area of Aberdeen.. Why would that thrush, UTI or bleeding from your rectum prevent you from doing the job?

Some employers can also ask you to have a complete medical examination, such a the ones BUPA offers for employee screening. With that in mind, you might want to ask for doctor of the same gender if you are being asked to have a medical for an employer, just in case in involves anything more than very basic stuff (you are allowed a GP of the same gender for intimate examinations even if it is not for a job). If your not bothered then that is is up to you.

The UK health profession refuse to do anything to stop this sort of thing and last time I contacted the MSP for my area (an SNP guy in Aberdeen) he seemed far from interested in stopping it, he even seemed to think it was a good idea for employers to invade our privacy.