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Document
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P-755
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File #
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P-9400204
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Institution/HIC
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Ministry of Education and Training
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Summary
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NATURE OF THE APPEAL: This is an appeal under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (the Act ). The Ministry of Education and Training (the Ministry) received a request for access to information concerning individuals who either hold Certificates of Qualification as electricians or are registered as apprentice electricians under the Trades Qualification Act (the TQA ). The Ministry denied access to the records, relying on the following exemption contained in the Act : invasion of privacy - section 21 A Notice of Inquiry was provided to the appellant and the Ministry and representations were received from both parties. The record at issue in this appeal consists of the names, certificate numbers, home addresses and home telephone numbers of individuals who either hold Certificates of Qualification or are registered as apprentices under the TQA and the names, addresses and telephone numbers of their employers. The record in question is capable of being retrieved through the creation of a special computer program. DISCUSSION: INVASION OF PRIVACY Under section 2(1) of the Act , "personal information" is defined, in part, to mean recorded information about an identifiable individual, including any identifying number assigned to the individual and the individual's name where it appears with other personal information relating to the individual or where the disclosure of the name would reveal other personal information about the individual. Having reviewed the information contained in a sample page of the record provided to the Commissioner's office, I find that those portions which contain the name, certificate number, home address and home telephone number of electricians and apprentice electricians satisfy the definition of "personal information" in section 2(1) of the Act and that this information relates to individuals other than the appellant. The remaining information which describes the name, address and telephone number of the employers may not be characterized as personal information and should, therefore, be disclosed to the appellant. Once it has been determined that a record contains personal information, section 21(1) of the Act prohibits the disclosure of this information to any person other than the individual to whom the information relates, except in certain circumstances. In its representations, the appellant submits that the exceptions to this general rule of non-disclosure outlined in sections 21(1)(b), (c) and (f) are applicable in the circumstances of this appeal. These sections read as follows: A head shall refuse to disclose personal information to any person other than the individual to whom the information relates except, (b) in compelling circumstances affecting the health or safety of an individual, if upon disclosure notification thereof is mailed to the last known address of the individual to whom the information relates; (c) personal information collected and maintained specifically for the purpose of creating a record available to the general public; (f) if the disclosure does not constitute an unjustified invasion of personal privacy. Based upon the evidence before me, I find that there do not exist any compelling circumstances affecting the health or safety of an individual to trigger the application of section 21(1)(b) of the Act . In order for the "public record" exception described in section 21(1)(c) of the Act to apply, it must be demonstrated that the personal information was "collected and maintained specifically for the purpose of creating a record available to the general public" (Order P-559). The appellant submits that the TQA requires that every contract of apprenticeship be registered and "it is difficult to conceive of a reason why this would be so if this was other than to create a record available to the general public". The Ministry, on the other hand, indicates that the information is collected strictly for the purpose of administering apprenticeship training programs and regulating trades people once they have been certified. Based upon the evidence before me, I find that the personal information was not collected and maintained specifically for the purpose of creating a record available to the general public. Accordingly, I find that the exception provided by section 21(1)(c) has no application in the circumstances of this appeal. The appellant further submits that, pursuant to section 21(1)(f) of the Act , disclosure of the personal information would not constitute an unjustified invasion of personal privacy. Sections 21(2), (3) and (4) of the Act provide guidance in determining this issue. Where one of the presumptions in section 21(3) applies to the personal information found in a record, the only way such a presumption against disclosure can be overcome is if the personal information falls under section 21(4) or where a finding is made that the public interest override found in section 23 of the Act applies to the personal information. If none of the presumptions in section 21(3) apply, the institution must consider the application of the factors listed in section 21(2) of the Act , as well as all other circumstances which are relevant in the circumstances of the case. In its representations, the Ministry submits that the personal information in the record relates to employment and educational history (section 21(3)(d)) and, therefore, that the disclosure of the personal information would constitute a presumed unjustified invasion of personal privacy. Previous orders have held that a person's name, occupation, position and employer, without more, will not attract the application of the presumption contained in section 21(3)(d). In my view, while the information in the record bears some relationship to the education and employment of electricians and apprentices, this information, without more, is not sufficient to attract the application of the presumption contained in section 21(3)(d). Accordingly, disclosure of the information in the record would not constitute a presumed unjustified invasion of personal privacy under section 21(3)(d). The Ministry also submits that the following factors outlined in section 21(2) weigh in favour of the non-disclosure of the information in the record: highly sensitive
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Legislation
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Subject Index
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Signed by
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Donald Hale
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Published
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Sep 13, 1994
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Type
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Order
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2013
Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario. All Rights Reserved.
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