The New Data Protection Regulation could cost businesses 3 billion a year due to employee data clause

Derek Mooney (public affairs director of the Brussels European Employee Relations Group – BEERG – ) writes for Euractiv.eu that contrary to what the EU Commission asserts, if the proposed General Data Protection Regulation is adopted with Article 82 as it stands, it will result in significant extra costs for all European business.

More precisely, if the GDPR is adopted with the Art 82 provision then business will have the “patchwork of 27 different rules in 27 countries” plus the additional obligations and burdens set out in the GDPR such as data protections officers; consent rules and 2% penalty on annual turnover without access to the costs savings the Commission claims.

So far from saving business €2.3 billion, this measure will cost business money EU wide – at a time when EU national governments are committing themselves to reducing employment costs.

BEERG research shows that at a conservative estimate the employee- data related data provisions alone could add  €3 billion each year in additional costs on business.

Article 82 of the GDPR excludes the area of employee data from the EU wide “one stop shop” by specifically providing that each member state shall also be empowered to regulate in this area.

Read the whole story: EU’s General Data Regulation could be Costly for Businesses