Dear Sir/Madam

I would like to know how many employees of the city council have
been absent from work due to either stress, anxiety, depression or
any combination of those ailments between 1st August 2004 and 31st
October 2008.

Please also confirm how many complaints of bullying have been made
by employees of the council against managers or colleagues during
the same period.

Please confirm how many employees have claimed constructive
dismissal within the same period for bullying/harassment.

Please confirm how many claims have been filed against the city
council at the Employment Tribunal within the same period for
bullying/harassment.

I would ask that you remember the statutory duty imposed upon
public authorities by virtue of Section 16 of the Freedom of
Information Act to provide advice and assistance to requesters. If
for any reason you are leaning toward rejecting any part of this
request or if you plan to argue that it is unmanageable or
unanswerable in any way then I would expect you to contact me
promptly to find ways to answer this request to our mutual
satisfaction.

Yours sincerely

Vicky Gray

Thank you for you Freedom of Information request.

This is an automated response. Your message has been received by East
Dunbartonshire Council.

Your request will be dealt with promptly and a full response will be issued
within 20 working days.

Should you not receive a response within this period, or you have any other
queries about your request please contact: [East Dunbartonshire Council request email] or 0141
775 4571.

show quoted sections

East Dunbartonshire Council Web Site http://www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk

Dear Sir or Madam

Thank you for your prompt response. I would also clarify when I
mentioned constructive dismissal, I was referring to the employee
directly, similar point about bullying and harassment complaints,
there is no Employment Tribunal claim called "bullying and
harassment". This will usually form part of a claim for unfair
dismissal or one (or more) of the various discrimination claim
and/or under the Protection from Harassment Act. Could you provide
the information on the aforementioned.

Could you provide the information in electronic format via this
website.

Thank you for your full co-operation

Yours Sincerely

Vicky Gray

Hi Vicky,

I work in ICT and developed the FOI system hence the email below appears to
be sent from me.

I have copied in our FOI Officer on this email ([East Dunbartonshire Council request email])
and you should be contacting this email address in future to ensure a
prompt response to your enquiry.

Cheers,

Kenny Rae
ICT Engineer
East Dunbartonshire Council
t 0141 578 8478
f 0141 578 8440
e mailto:[email address]
w http://www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk

Vicky Gray
<request-4560-f72
0cc5c@whatdotheyk To
now.com> [email address]
cc
06/12/2008 18:48
Subject
Re: Freedom of Information request
- Bullying and Harassment

Dear Sir or Madam

Thank you for your prompt response. I would also clarify when I
mentioned constructive dismissal, I was referring to the employee
directly, similar point about bullying and harassment complaints,
there is no Employment Tribunal claim called "bullying and
harassment". This will usually form part of a claim for unfair
dismissal or one (or more) of the various discrimination claim
and/or under the Protection from Harassment Act. Could you provide
the information on the aforementioned.

Could you provide the information in electronic format via this
website.

Thank you for your full co-operation

Yours Sincerely

Vicky Gray

show quoted sections

Dear Ms Gray

I refer to your recent FOI request and respond as follows:

1. I would like to know how many employees of the city council have been
absent from work due to either stress, anxiety, depression or
any combination of those ailments between 1st August 2004 and 31st
October 2008.

362

2. Please also confirm how many complaints of bullying have been made by
employees of the council against managers or colleagues during the
same period.

In response to your information request of 4 December 2008, I confirm
that the Council holds the information which you have requested.
However, in view of the small number of employees concerned, it would
be possible to identify the individual employees from the information
which you have requested. Accordingly, the Council refuses to
disclose the information to you, in terms of Section 38(1) and (2) of
the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, as it is personal
data as defined in the Data Protection Act 1998, and its disclosure
would contravene the data protection principles set out in the Data
Protection Act.

3. Please confirm how many employees have claimed constructive dismissal
within the same period for bullying/harassment.

0

4. Please confirm how many claims have been filed against the city
council at the Employment Tribunal within the same period for
bullying/harassment.

0

If you are dissatisfied with the Council's response to your information
request, you are entitled, under Section 20 of the Freedom of Information
(Scotland) Act 2002, to require the Council to carry out a review of its
response. If you wish to exercise this right, please let me know in
writing or by e mail within 40 working days of your receipt of this
response, and I shall arrange for the review to be carried out by a senior
Council officer unconnected with the original response to your request.
Please note that you will not be entitled to refer this matter to the
Scottish Information Commissioner unless you have first required the
Council to carry out such a review.

I hope this is of assistance to you.

David Smith
Human Resources Operations Manager
East Dunbartonshire Council
tel: office 0141 578 8407
mobile 07887942313

show quoted sections

East Dunbartonshire Council Web Site http://www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk

Dear Sir or Madam

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of
Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of East Dunbartonshire
Council's handling of my FOI request 'Bullying and Harassment'.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is
available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/bu...
The council claim that they cannot provide the information on
bullying due to the data protection act. I have not asked for any
names just figures. One would think it would be part of the
council’s duty of care under both the Health & Safety At Work Act
1974 and also under most contracts of employment, to protect the
identity of employees who reports bullying. If as the council
alleges that by giving the figures they would be able to identify
employees does this infer that victims of alleged bullying are
discussed throughout all departments so there is no confidentially?
If this is the case there are serious confidentiality issues.

I pointed out to the council there is no constructive dismissal, I
was referring to the employee directly, similar point about
bullying and harassment complaints, there is no Employment Tribunal
claim called "bullying and harassment". This will usually form part
of a claim for unfair dismissal or one (or more) of the various
discrimination claim and/or under the Protection from Harassment
Act. The council answered this question referring to bullying which
would not provide the correct information.

Yours sincerely

Vicky Gray

Thank you for you Freedom of Information request.

This is an automated response. Your message has been received by East
Dunbartonshire Council.

Your request will be dealt with promptly and a full response will be issued
within 20 working days.

Should you not receive a response within this period, or you have any other
queries about your request please contact: [East Dunbartonshire Council request email] or 0141
775 4571.

show quoted sections

East Dunbartonshire Council Web Site http://www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk

Dear Ms Gray,

I am writing to confirm that East Dunbartonshire Council has received your
request for a review of the response provided to your Freedom of
Information enquiry dated the 4th of December 2008.

The review will be handled by staff who were not involved in the original
decision. You will receive notice of the results of the review within 20
working days of the receipt of your request.

If you have any further queries regarding this process or your Freedom of
Information request, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours Sincerely,

Stephen Armstrong,

Freedom of Information/Data Protection Officer,
Libraries & Cultural Services,
East Dunbartonshire Council,
Telephone No. 0141-775 4571
Fax No. 0141-776 0408
[email address]

Vicky Gray
<request-4560-f72
0cc5c@whatdotheyk To
now.com> FOI requests at East Dunbartonshire
Council <[East Dunbartonshire Council request email]>
09/01/2009 12:30 cc

Subject
Internal review of Freedom of
Information request - Bullying and
Harassment

Dear Sir or Madam

Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of
Information reviews.

I am writing to request an internal review of East Dunbartonshire
Council's handling of my FOI request 'Bullying and Harassment'.

A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is
available on the Internet at this address:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/bu...
The council claim that they cannot provide the information on
bullying due to the data protection act. I have not asked for any
names just figures. One would think it would be part of the
council?s duty of care under both the Health & Safety At Work Act
1974 and also under most contracts of employment, to protect the
identity of employees who reports bullying. If as the council
alleges that by giving the figures they would be able to identify
employees does this infer that victims of alleged bullying are
discussed throughout all departments so there is no confidentially?
If this is the case there are serious confidentiality issues.

I pointed out to the council there is no constructive dismissal, I
was referring to the employee directly, similar point about
bullying and harassment complaints, there is no Employment Tribunal
claim called "bullying and harassment". This will usually form part
of a claim for unfair dismissal or one (or more) of the various
discrimination claim and/or under the Protection from Harassment
Act. The council answered this question referring to bullying which
would not provide the correct information.

Yours sincerely

Vicky Gray

show quoted sections

Dear Ms Gray,

Your request for a review of the Council's response to your FOI request has
been passed to me, and I have been asked to respond.

I understand that your review request relates specifically to the second
question in your original FOI request: the number of complaints of bullying
or harassment made by employees against managers or employees between
01/08/04 and 31/10/08.

Having reviewed this matter, I am of the view that the Council has dealt
with this aspect of your FOI request in accordance with Part 1 of the
Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002. The number of complaints of
this nature by employees is sufficiently small that to disclose it would
entail a substantial risk of identification of the individuals concerned.
That being so, the information comprises personal data, as defined in the
Data Protection Act 1998, and its disclosure to you would be in breach of
the data protection principles set out in that Act. It is, therefore,
exempt from disclosure under Section 38(1)(b) of the Freedom of Information
(Scotland) Act 2002.

Accordingly, in terms of Section 21(4)(a) of the 2002 Act, I have to
confirm the Council's decision not to disclose that information to you.

If you are dissatisfied with the Council's response to your requirement for
a review, you are entitled, under Section 47(1) of the Act, to apply to the
Scottish Information Commissioner for a decision whether your FOI request
has been dealt with in accordance with Part 1 of the Act. Your application
must be in writing or some other permanent form which can be used for
subsequent reference, and must be submitted before the expiry of six months
after the date of your receipt of this e mail. It should be sent to the
following address -

Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St Andrews KY16 9DS
Tel: 01334 464610;
Fax: 01334 464611;
E mail: [email address]

Under Section 56 of the Act, an appeal on a point of law may be made to the
Court of Session against a decision by the Scottish Information
Commissioner in response to an application under Section 47.

Yours sincerely,

Martin Waddell
Solicitor
East Dunbartonshire Council
Tom Johnston House
Civic Way
Kirkintilloch G66 4TJ
Tel: 0141-578 8053

show quoted sections

East Dunbartonshire Council Web Site http://www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk

Dear Martin Waddell

I have not requested any names just figures.

Personal data as defined under the Data Protection Act and
subsequent case law is not straightforward. Simply because a person
might be named in a document, does not necessarily make that
document that person’s personal data as defined under the Act. It
is a very complex area and in the case of grievance data, you
cannot argue that the employees making a complaint had any
reasonable expectation of privacy, as ultimately, it may have gone
all the way to a tribunal and would be a matter of public record
any way.

Therefore the only conclusion I can draw is that you are
purposefully seeking to conceal the number of cases of bullying
within your organisation.

Yours sincerely

Vicky Gray

Dear Ms Grey,

I am writing on behalf of East Dunbartonshire Council in order to
provide you with the information originally withheld from your Freedom
of Information request dated the 4th of December 2008. Please find below
the response to your request in its entirety.

1. I would like to know how many employees of the city council have
been absent from work due to either stress, anxiety, depression or
any combination of those ailments between 1st August 2004 and 31st
October 2008.

362

2. Please also confirm how many complaints of bullying have been made
by employees of the council against managers or colleagues during
the same period.

3

3. Please confirm how many employees have claimed constructive dismissal
within the same period for bullying/harassment.

0

4. Please confirm how many claims have been filed against the city
council at the Employment Tribunal within the same period for
bullying/harassment.

0

I hope that this information is to your satisfaction. If there are any
problems please do not hesitate to contact me.

Yours sincerely,

Stephen Armstrong,

Freedom of Information/Data Protection Officer,
Libraries & Cultural Services,
East Dunbartonshire Council,
Telephone No. 0141-775 4571
Fax No. 0141-776 0408
[email address]

Vicky Gray
<request-4560-f72
0cc5c@whatdotheyk To
now.com> FOI requests at East Dunbartonshire
Council <[East Dunbartonshire Council request email]>
04/12/2008 18:12 cc

Subject
Freedom of Information request -
Bullying and Harassment

Dear Sir/Madam

I would like to know how many employees of the city council have
been absent from work due to either stress, anxiety, depression or
any combination of those ailments between 1st August 2004 and 31st
October 2008.

Please also confirm how many complaints of bullying have been made
by employees of the council against managers or colleagues during
the same period.

Please confirm how many employees have claimed constructive
dismissal within the same period for bullying/harassment.

Please confirm how many claims have been filed against the city
council at the Employment Tribunal within the same period for
bullying/harassment.

I would ask that you remember the statutory duty imposed upon
public authorities by virtue of Section 16 of the Freedom of
Information Act to provide advice and assistance to requesters. If
for any reason you are leaning toward rejecting any part of this
request or if you plan to argue that it is unmanageable or
unanswerable in any way then I would expect you to contact me
promptly to find ways to answer this request to our mutual
satisfaction.

Yours sincerely

Vicky Gray

show quoted sections

Dear Sir or Madam

Thank you for eventually providing the correct information after
the intervention of the very helpful Scottish Commissioner Mr John
Kelly.

Yours sincerely

Vicky Gray

Thank you for you Freedom of Information request.

This is an automated response. Your message has been received by East
Dunbartonshire Council.

Your request will be dealt with promptly and a full response will be issued
within 20 working days.

Should you not receive a response within this period, or you have any other
queries about your request please contact: [East Dunbartonshire Council request email] or 0141
775 4571.

show quoted sections

East Dunbartonshire Council Web Site http://www.eastdunbarton.gov.uk