Republic of the Philippines BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY Batangas City Tel Nos (043) 980-0385 Too. 1104.8 1108 E-mail Address: inf@baisacu-edu ph Website Addvess: p/w batted ph HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT OFFICE TO : ALL COLLEGE DEANS THROUGH 2 Dr. AGNES D. ARELLANO Director, Internal Assessment Unit SUBJECT HR DOCUMENTS COVERED BY THE DATA PRIVACY ACT AND EXEMPTED UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION (FOI) MANUAL OF THE UNIVERSITY DATE fl 01 OCTOBER 2020 This Office has received numerous requests from different colleges asking for documents in support of the accreditation of their respective programs. Inasmuch as the undersigned would like to furnish all the requested documents, please be informed that there are documents that are confidential in nature, hence, cannot be disclosed. Hence, the HRMO is precluded by existing laws, rules, and regulations in releasing the same without the consent of the owner or without undergoing the Freedom of Information (FOI) procedure. Specifically, the following documents cannot be released absent written consent from the faculty/employee concemed or undergoing the FOI procedure: 1, Service Records, Personal Data Sheet, Curriculum Vitae, Resume, 201 Files including _appointment_papers), Personal Services Itemization and Plantilla_of Personnel (a.k.a Plantilla), Certificate of Employment, Psychological and Medical Examination Results, CSC Form (Leave Form), and Proof of Terminal Leave Benefits These documents contain, among others, the full names, addresses, sex, education, information issued by government agencies peculiar to an individual (licenses, TIN, GSIS numbers, etc), and other information from which the identity of an individual is apparent or can be reasonably and directly ascertained. Section 3 (g) and (1) of Republic Act 10173 or the Data Privacy Act of 2012 defines "personal information” and “sensitive personal information” respectively as follows: (g) Personal information refers to any information whether recorded in @ material form or not, from which the identity of an individual is apparent or can be reasonably and directly ascertained by the entity holding the information or when put together with other information would directly and certainly identify an individual. Xxx (D Sensitive personal information refers to personal information: (1) About an individual’s race, ethnic origin, marital status, age, color, and religious, philosophical or political affiliations; (2) About an individual’s health, education, genetic or sexual life of a person, or to any proceeding for any offense committed or alleged to have been committed by such person, the disposal of such proceedings, or the sentence of any court in such proceedings;(3) Issued by government agencies peculiar to an individual which includes, but not limited to, social security numbers, previous or current health records, licenses or its denials, suspension or revocation, and tax returns; and. (4) Specifically established by an executive order or an act of Congress to be kept classified, tis of no doubt, therefore, that the said documents contain not only personal information but also sensitive personal information, Hence, the processing (including releasing) thereof. must comply with the requirements of Sections 12 and 13 of the said law reading, thus: Section 12. Criteria for Lawful Processing of Personal Information. ~The processing of personal information shall be permitted only if not otherwise prohibited by law, and when at least one of the following conditions exists: (a) The data subject has given his or her consent; (b) The processing of personal information is necessary and is related to the fulfillment of a contract with the data subject or in order to take steps at the request of the data subject prior to entering into a contract; (©) The processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the personal information controller is subject; (@) The processing is necessary to protect vitally important interests of the data subject, including life and health; (©) The processing is necessary in order to respond to national emergency, to comply with the requirements of public order and safety, or to fulfill functions of public authority which necessarily includes the processing of personal data for the fulfillment ofits mandate; or (f) The processing is necessary for the purposes of the legitimate interests pursued by the personal information controller or by a third party or parties to whom the data is disclosed, except where such interests are overridden by fundamental rights and freedoms of the data subject which require protection under the Philippine Constitution, Section 13. Sensitive Personal Information and Privileged Information, ~ The processing of sensitive personal information and privileged information shall be prohibited, except in the following cases: (@) The data subject has given his or her consent, specific to the purpose prior to the processing, or in the case of privileged information, all parties to the exchange have given their consent prior to processing; (b) The processing of the same is provided for by existing laws and regulations: Provided, That such regulatory enactments guarantee the protection of the sensitive personal information and the privileged information: Provided, further, That the consent of the data subjects are not required by law or regulation permitting the processing of the sensitive personal information or the privileged information; (©) The processing is necessary to protect the life and health of the data subject or another person, and the data subject is not legally or physically able to express his or her consent prior to the processing;2 4, (@) The processing is necessary to achieve the lawful and noncommercial objectives ‘of public organizations and their associations: Provided, That such processing is only confined and related to the bona fide members of these organizations or their associations: Provided, further, That the sensitive personal information are not transferred to third parties: Provided, finally, That consent of the data subject was obtained prior to processing: (©) The processing is necessary for purposes of medical treatment, is carried out by a medical practitioner or a medical treatment institution, and an adequate level of protection of personal information is ensured; or (®) The processing concerns such personal information as is necessary for the protection of lawful rights and interests of nafural or legal persons in court Proceedings, or the establishment, exercise or defense of legal claims, or when provided to government or public authority Among the criteria mentioned above, it can be said that the requested documents can only be released through the consent of the data subject in view of the difficulty in proving the other criteria under Sections 12 and 13. Hence, without the consent of the faculty/employee concerned, the undersigned cannot disclose the said documents without violating the law. Further, under Section 6 (2.1) of the FOI Manual of the Batangas State University, 201 Files are exempted from the coverage of FOI Manual. Hence, under the same section “If the request is exempted from coverage, the FRO shall recommend the denial of the request for information to the FDMx.x x". In addition thereto, Annex B of the Manual provides a list of exceptions to the FOI Manual and includes therein “The information pertains to the personal information of a natural person other than the requesting party, and its disclosure would constitute an unwarranted invasion of his/her privacy xxx" Personnel Training Development Committee (PTDC), Program on Awards and Incentives for Service Excellence (PRAISE) Committee, Faculty Selection Board (ESB) and Human Resource Merit Promotion and Selection Board’s (HRMPSB’s) Minutes of the Meetings, Resolutions, Comparative Assessments/Evaluations of Applicants These are also documents exempted from the coverage of FOI Manual. Hence, under the same section “If the request is exempted from coverage, the FRO shall recommend the denial of the request for information to the FDM xxx”. Individual_Performance Commitment Review (IPCR) and Office Performance Commitment Review (OPCR) ‘These are also documents exempted from the coverage of FOI Manual. Hence, under the same section “If the request is exempted from coverage, the FRO shall recommend the denial of the request for information to the FDM xxx” Proofs of Payment of Salaries, Benefits and Other Incentives The only proof that personnel are paid with their salaries, benefits and other incentives is the payroll itself. While information relating to salary range and to discretionary benefit of a financial nature are not covered by RA 10173, there are personal information included in the payroll. These include the employee number and sometimes the account numbers of personnel, both of which are protected by the Data Privacy Act.5. Proceedings of Administrative Investigations Under Section 6 (2.1) of the FOI Manual, documents related to a pending case before a judicial or quasi-judicial agency are exempted from the coverage thereof. While ‘conducting an administrative investigation, proper committees of the University are akin to a quasi-judicial body, hence, this exception applies by analogy. Further, the findings of an investigation committee is a “report not final in form”, hence, itis likewise exempted. In addition, Annex B of the FOI Manual states that the following documents are likewise exempted from FOL a. Investigation or proceeding conducted by public authorities b. Proceedings before the Committee on Decorum and Investigation during preliminary investigation c. Confidential information relating to pending cases even after the decision, resolution or order is made public 4d. Records of cases that are still pending for decision are privileged materials that cannot be disclosed e. Information, if prematurely disclosed, would likely to frustrate the effective implementation of a proposed official action ‘The above enumeration is more than sufficient to treat the requested document as beyond the ambit of the FOI Manual. This is not to mention the sensitive personal information included in the records of the case which, if disclosed, would defeat the confidential nature of the proceedings, If the accreditors will insist in viewing/reading the proceedings of the case, this Office will require a notarized undertaking stating therein that any and all information obtained therefrom will not be divulged in any manner and violation thereof will give rise to a cause of action on the part of the University. This should be executed both by the accreditors and the faculty members/officials, not privy to the investigation, in- charge of the accreditation. For items 1 to 4, the accreditors may proceed to this Office to view the said documents. The contents of item number 5, however, cannot be divulged to the accreditors. We understand, however, that the accreditation will be done virtually, hence the undersigned may personally attend therein to provide any assistance allowed by existing laws, rules and regulations, May this letter assist you in taking proper action on the matter. . Atty. Ne OMANDAP Assistant Director, For release: Atty. ALVIN Director for Administ Atty. LUZVIMIND,C, ROSALES VP for Administrgtigé and Finance