BUSINESS AND HUMAN RIGHTS / Šturma, Mozetic (eds)

2. The Use of New Technologies in the Processing of Data from Employee

The dynamics of the contemporary world resulted in the development of new technologies, the network of computers, the internet and other electronic tools, and, consequently, of a new information society, 3 which operates on the basis of data. 4 The advancement of technology and the means of communication brought profound impact for the Law and for the social relations, in particular, for Labor Law. We cannot deny that in terms of information technology and telecommunications, there was a greater availability of information by the worker himself and access to it by the employer. In this context, labor relations constitute a favorable environment for the collection of data and personal information 5 of the employee, since the selection of the candidate for a job vacancy the employer makes inquiries about life history, training and identification data, as well as, applies tests and performs interviews. In the course of the contract and, sometimes, even after the termination, the employer also obtains and maintains an immense range of personal information of the worker. It should be emphasized that the collection by the employer of information on the experience and expertise of the employee, their physical and psychological characteristics, skills, capabilities, performance and behavior in general is not new. This practice, as noted by Sanden 6 “is inextricably linked to the business interest to improve both the production and the process of labor selection.” In fact, the big change was the possibility of processing of virtually unlimited amount of information about the employees, being that such data collected remain for years present and usable, capable of adding and correction, making reliable information, 3 According to Vieira (VIEIRA, 2007, p. 156), in 1993 the term information society was first used officially by the President of the European Commission, Jacques Delors, at the Council of Europe in Copenhagen, to define the crescent use of the technology of the information in the intention of reinforcing the economy, to improve the installment of the public services and to increase the quality of the life of citizens. 4 The expression “data” can be defined as the record that represents a fact, a concept, an instruction, an element or an attribute of the person, entity or thing, as Chehab points out. (see CHEHAB, G. C. Privacy threatened with death: challenges to the protection of personal data in the employment relationship through the use of information technology . São Paulo: LTr, 2015, p. 23) 5 As for the use of the terms “information” and “data”, Doneda (DONEDA, D. From privacy protection of personal data . Rio de Janeiro: Renovar, 2006, p. 152) explains that the content of both words overlaps in various circumstances, and the doctrine often treats these two terms indistinctly. Both “information” and “data” serve to represent a fact, a certain aspect of a reality, however each one carries a particular weight. In this sense, “data” has a more primitive and fragmented connotation, a kind of information in potential state, before being transmitted, whereas “information” refers to something beyond the representation contained in the data, in the which is already presupposed an initial phase of purification of its content, then the information carries in itself an instrumental meaning, in the sense of reducing a state of uncertainty. 6 SANDEN MOREIRA DE SOUZA, A. F. The protection of personal data of employees in Brazilian law: a study on the limits on the obtaining and use by the employer of the information related to the employee. Sao Paulo: LTr, 2014, p. 23.

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