Subject:
Pyhiscal Long Forms
I renewed my DOT Certification this morning and
was somewhat dismayed to discover Gray Line expects HealthForce to deliver my
DOT card AND my physical long form to you. This exceeds information to
which you are entitled, and constitutes serious invasion of my privacy. FMCSR
law requires the company to have a copy of my DOT card on file, which carries
upon it the notation that long form “is on file in my office”, said office
being that of the doctor performing the certification.
When I objected to the long form being delivered
to you, the receptionist indicated Gray Line would not pay for the physical if
I didn’t sign the release. Had I means upon me to pay for the physical, I would
have.
Understand that I have not, nor will I ever,
sign a release authorizing YOU to share this information with anyone, in or out of the office, and furthermore hold you
personally responsible to insure that it is never seen by anyone. Should I ever
believe this information has been seen or shared by/with anyone other
than you, I will have no choice but to take legal action to the maximum extent
of the law.
I cannot believe the arrogance of the individual
responsible for even requesting such information be delivered to Gray Line! Not
only is unnecessary for you to have this information, it creates reams of
paperwork for the company to store, and enormous security concerns regarding
maintenance of said storage. Supposedly we are in financial despair. The burden
of this additional expense seems preposterous.
It is my personal opinion that all such documents
in your possession should be shredded immediately, and HealthForce be
instructed to no longer forward long forms to the Company. In interim, I formally request you
immediately post notice in a public space for all to see, the measures taken by
the Company to preserve the privacy and integrity of this information.
The Above letter was sent to Daryl Whitaker on
3/5/04.
On 3/8/04, Daryl responded.
In his letter, DOT and DOD once required maintenance
of physical long forms. I’ve requested documentation regarding this,
specifically when this requirement was effective. He also indicates these
requirements no longer exist. Deeper in his response, he writes; “Upon receipt
of your letter, I immediately called HealthForce and advised them that we no
longer require a long form be provided to us, that only a medical card be
provided to us and that anyone coming in for a recertification and
pre-employment physical for Gray Line not be required to pay for it under any
circumstances.”
Regarding security of these sensitive documents,
Daryl writes; “Any and all information that the Safety Department has on
employees is kept in a locking file cabinet in my office, which is locked when
I am away from my desk for more than a couple of minutes and another safety
person is not in sight of the office.”
The following response has been sent to Daryl on
3/8/04.
Daryl,
I
appreciate confirmation that request for future long forms from HealthForce has
been rescinded. That is as it should be.
Several
points of your letter run counter to my experience. I received my first
Commercial Driver’s License in 1983, and have held a driving position in some
capacity since. This is the first I have heard of any employer maintaining long
forms on premise. When I started with this company, nothing was delivered.
Driver’s hand carried their certification cards to safety to photocopy. At no
time was I informed of the company’s intent to obtain and store this
information. I would never have allowed it.
If
you have any documentation from DOT or DOD requiring long form physicals
be maintained on premise at any time in history, I would greatly appreciate a
photocopy, showing the effective date.
I’m
glad to hear you take privacy so seriously. In that vain, just in case I wasn’t
clear, YOU are the only INDIVIDUAL I have RELUCTANTLY authorized
access to my long form.
Understand
that I have not, nor will I ever, sign a release authorizing YOU to share this
information with anyone, in or out
of the office, and furthermore hold you personally responsible to insure that
it is never seen by anyone. Should I ever believe this information has been
seen or shared by/with anyone other than you, I will have no choice but
to take legal action to the maximum extent of the law.
Leaving the file cabinet unlocked anytime you are not in
visual contact with it is not sufficient. Additionally, make sure no one else
has a key.
However, since you seem to agree their presence on premise
is not a requirement, shredding all copies of every long form on site would
alleviate security concerns.
Respectfully,
Brian Donald
Cc: Dan Bentley