No longer to use "house to house record" slips and "please follow up slips"! (page 5)

defender of truth

Terry:
"What issues are REDEFINING this organization are purely along the lines of "follow the money."
------
(For anyone who missed my above posts)
"Some of the main proposals are: introducing fines from data protection authorities of up to €1m (£780,000) or 2 per cent of annual worldwide turnover.."
http://www.thirdsector.co.uk/new-eu-data-protection-laws-a-headache-uk-charities-lawyer-warns/management/article/1321400

Chaserious

Someone asked me to weigh in on this thread from a legal perspective. If these forms have been discontinued in the U.S., I don't think it's due to fear of liability under any privacy or data collection laws. There is nothing illegal in the U.S. about collecting an address along with any information that a person voluntarily discloses, such as name, contact info, etc. This is especially so considering that they are not stored in a central database, but typically just retained in the file of whoever personally collected the information. There is an increasing amount of litigation over unwanted phone/email correspondence, but that wouldn't apply in the case of someone who turns over that information person-to-person and then is contacted. I can’t see any connection between this and “Obamacare” either.

I would guess that this is due to an overall strategy to reduce the appearance of central control over the "preaching" work. They certainly don't want to be on the hook for an agent/servant relationship arising for any liability incurred by individual JWs in field service. This could include anything from vehicle damage/personal injury to physical/sexual assault allegations to trespassing charges. The less individual JWs use WTBTS forms as they go about preaching, that's one less piece of evidence for courts to use to find that the WTBTS is vicariously liable for any acts of individual JWs. WTBTS surely wants the spin that all preaching is organized and directed at the congregation/individual level.

As for other countries, I can’t offer much insight on legal reasons for pulling these forms. As others have said, privacy laws tend to be stricter outside of the U.S.

smiddy

There is nothing illegal in the U.S. about collecting an address along with any information that a person voluntarily discloses, such as name, contact info, etc.

From what I recall about collecting such information , it had nothing to do with the householder volunteering information collected , it was the jw`s responsability to observe and take down and record what he/she noticed about the householder and their circumstances .

smiddy

If signs are posted: PRIVATE KEEP OUT! They will jump right in and knock.

In my early days we were doing rural territory in central victoria , we approached the gate of a property when a farmer yelled out from a distance away not to enter as someone their had a contagious disease , being relatively new in the truth , I said something like" I will be very breif and leave you with this publication" , his response ? Come any closer and I`ll blow your f*##*n head off .

And I was always told country folk were warm and freindly

I hated that long weekend , was glad when it was over . Never did rural territory ever again .

smiddy

defender of truth

Even getting rid of official forms may not be enough, according to this..

Data compliance breach firms face fines of up to £500,000

"From quickly scribbled names on a sticky note to full confidential reports, Shropshire businesses have been urged to check they comply with data protection law or face fines of up to £500,000.
And she said it was not just the risk of financial penalties, with brand damage and loss of reputation also enough to send a company under.

“Everything from a Post-It note with a name and telephone number to client surveys and customer reports must be disposed of under the DPA,” she said.
“Every single person in the UK has a legal right to ask at any point what information you hold on them, whether you still hold it and if not, how it was destroyed.
“If your response does not meet data protection laws, a complaint could be made to the Information Commissioner’s Office and that could result in legal action and a fine anywhere up to £500,000.

Not only that but with breaches published on the ICO’s website for anyone to see, the damage to your business’s reputation and brand could be irreversible and even enough to send an organisation under.”
From January to October this year(2014) alone, a total of almost £1 million in fines has been levied by the ICO on organisations in England, Wales and Northern Ireland for data protection breaches.

Even charities are not exempt from the law.."

http://www.shropshirelive.com/2014/11/19/data-compliance-breach-firms-face-fines-of-up-to-500000/

defender of truth

And if anyone wants to report anything to the Information Commissioners Office..

https://ico.org.uk/global/contact_us

defender of truth

SOMETHING JUST STRUCK ME...
I doubt that anyone is reading any of this, but please bear in mind the quote from the above article regarding data being kept on people (even when written informally on sticky notes for example).

Then, please read these clear instructions, directly from the Society, in the Febuary 2014 KM..

"This month we are encouraged to work on making a record of the interest.
We must return to those who show interest and teach them...
This requires finding the person again, talking about his concerns, and building on our previous conversation.

Therefore, when we find interest, it is necessary to make a record of it.

How to Do It:
Make sure that you have tools in your witnessing case for recording interest. Keep your records neat, well-organized, and up-to-date.
Make a record as soon as you finish the call.

Write down information about the householder.
What is his name and contact information, such as his address, phone number, or email address?
What did you observe about him and his family that may be signicant?
Write down the details of your conversation.
Record the time, the day of the week, and the date of the visit.
Update your record each time you return.

No harm is done if you write down more information than you need."

[Take note of the wording used: must, necessary, make sure.. These are undeniably instructions, straight from the Society.
Getting rid of those forms does not remove the evidence that all Witnesses are instructed to keep records of householders personal information by the Society.]

Download the KM straight from the official source...
http://download.jw.org/files/media_publickm/7b/km_E_201402.pdf

Chaserious

From what I recall about collecting such information , it had nothing to do with the householder volunteering information collected , it was the jw`s responsability to observe and take down and record what he/she noticed about the householder and their circumstances .

Nothing about this would give rise to a lawsuit in the United States either. It wasn't clear to me from the OP - did they discontinue these worldwide?

Often when an organization makes a chance to some inconsequential policy such as this, it's not because the old was one clearly illegal. Even if there is a 99% change it's legal, it's not worth the 1% risk. Even reading about UK and EU laws that were linked to, I am doubtful they would be liable in connection with the house to house forms. The "please follow up" forms might be stickier as they are turned in centrally.

defender of truth

Chaserious, only the UK and New Zealand have been confirmed in this thread so far (we had the letter in the UK this week too by the way).
The only other possibility I could come up with, is if people are complaining that JW's are being seen making records of when people are out?
Probably not, but if it's not that, and it is not related to the new Data Protection.. Then why are they doing this?

defender of truth

Chaserious:
"Even reading about UK and EU laws that were linked to, I am doubtful they would be liable in connection with the house to house forms."
...............

Thanks for looking into it, but the following thread mentions that even 13 years ago, S8's (house to house forms) were no longer to be used because of the Data Protection Act.
And the new one is meant to be harsher..

http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/jw/friends/2863/1/UK-Data-Protection-Act

......
Also, this thread contains a scanned (and edited slightly) copy of the BOE letter regarding Data Protection Act. It stated that not-at-home forms and S3's (Bible study reports) were not to be used, and any info other than name and address should not be passed on. Please read it for yourself.
It was at least confirmed as accurate by Cantleave, a former elder.

http://www.jehovahs-witness.net/watchtower/beliefs/185091/1/THE-DATA-PROTECTION-ACT-letter

No longer to use "house to house record" slips and "please follow up slips"!

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