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Privacy & cookie policy

This notice explains what personal data we collect when you use this site or apply for work, why we collect it, how long we keep it, and the rights you have over it.

Last updated: 2 August 2026

Who we are

The data controller for the personal data described in this notice is:

  • Emerald Accounting Services Limited, trading as Emerald Workforce
  • Registered in Ireland (CRO), company number 586146
  • Apartment 605, Tramco Brewery, 121–125 Rathmines Road Lower, Dublin 6, D06 F2P5
  • Email: workforce@emerald-workforce.com · Phone: +353 89 982 4453

We process personal data under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. The supervisory authority is the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC).

What personal data we collect

When you browse the site

Your IP address and basic technical information (browser, device type, pages viewed) are processed by our hosting provider to serve the site and keep it secure. If — and only if — you accept the relevant cookies, analytics and advertising identifiers are also collected. See Cookies.

When you apply for a job

Depending on which form you use, we collect: your first and last name, date of birth, email address, phone number, home address, city, registered address, nationality, right-to-work status, the role and location you want, shift preference, earliest start date, work experience, skills, languages, driving licence, and any additional notes you write.

The full application form also asks about medical conditions, allergies and previous injuries. This is health data — a special category under Article 9 GDPR. It is optional, it is used solely to keep you safe on site, and it is processed only with your explicit consent.

When you report an employer

Your name and contact details, date of birth, address, the employer and workplace concerned, the date and time of the incident, who you spoke to, and the details you describe.

When you verify your identity

An image of your identity document, a short video of your face, and — where you choose to provide it — a proof-of-address document. See Identity verification below.

Why we process it, and our legal basis

PurposeLegal basis (GDPR)
Processing your job application and putting you in touch with an employerArt. 6(1)(b) — steps taken at your request before entering a contract
Confirming you are who you say you are (identity check)Art. 6(1)(a) consent, and Art. 9(2)(a) explicit consent for the biometric element
Health, allergy and injury information for on-site safetyArt. 9(2)(a) — your explicit consent
Investigating a complaint you make about an employerArt. 6(1)(f) — our legitimate interest in investigating reports, and yours in being protected at work
Keeping the website available and secureArt. 6(1)(f) — legitimate interest in operating our own service
Analytics and advertising measurementArt. 6(1)(a) — your consent, given through the cookie banner
Meeting our obligations as an employment agencyArt. 6(1)(c) — legal obligation

Giving us your application details is not a statutory requirement, but without them we cannot process an application or refer you to an employer. Consent, where it is the basis, can be withdrawn at any time without affecting processing already carried out.

Identity verification

To confirm that an applicant is a real person, we ask you to photograph an identity document and record a short video of your face. Before anything is captured you are shown what will be collected and must actively agree — nothing is recorded if you do not.

  • The face video is used to check that a live person is present and that they match the photo on the document. This makes it biometric data, a special category under Article 9, processed only on your explicit consent.
  • The document image and face video are transmitted over an encrypted connection and stored in our own Google Workspace account, accessible only to staff handling your application.
  • We do not use your face or document to build a biometric profile, and we do not use them for any purpose other than verifying this application.

Automated decision-making

The verification produces an automated result — approved, rejected or referred — based on automatic checks such as whether the document is readable, whether a face is present, and whether the images meet quality thresholds. Because this can affect whether your application proceeds, Article 22 GDPR gives you the right to ask for a human to review the decision, to express your point of view, and to contest the outcome. Email us and a person will look at it.

Who we share your data with

  • The employer you apply to. We pass on the details needed to consider you for the role. We do not sell your data or share it with anyone else for their own marketing.
  • Google Ireland Limited. Applications and uploaded documents are stored in Google Workspace (Sheets and Drive), which we use as our processor.
  • Hostinger International Ltd. Hosts this website and its server logs.
  • Google Ireland Limited (Google Ads) and Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, for advertising measurement — only if you accept advertising or analytics cookies.
  • Public authorities, where we are legally required to disclose — for example to the Workplace Relations Commission or An Garda Síochána.

Transfers outside the EEA. Our processors are EU-established, but some of them (notably Google and Meta) may transfer data to the United States as part of their global infrastructure. Those transfers rely on the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses and, where applicable, the EU–US Data Privacy Framework.

How long we keep it

DataKept for
Applications for urgent / short-term shifts7 days, then deleted automatically
Standard job applications6 months (183 days), then deleted automatically
Employer complaints6 months, to cover the investigation window
Identity document images and face videoDeleted with the application they belong to — 7 days for urgent shifts, up to 6 months otherwise
Verification session data on our serverDeleted when the session ends or expires, within 24 hours
Cookie consent record6 months, after which we ask you again

Deletion of applications and complaints runs automatically on a schedule; we do not keep records beyond the periods above unless we are legally required to.

Your rights

Under GDPR you have the right to:

  • Access the personal data we hold about you, and get a copy of it.
  • Rectify anything inaccurate or incomplete.
  • Erase your data ("right to be forgotten").
  • Restrict or object to our processing, including profiling.
  • Portability — receive your data in a machine-readable format.
  • Withdraw consent at any time, where consent is the basis (identity check, health information, cookies).
  • Human review of an automated verification decision — see Identity verification.

To exercise any of these, email workforce@emerald-workforce.com. We respond within one month.

If you are not satisfied with how we handled your data, you can complain to the Data Protection Commission: 6 Pembroke Row, Dublin 2, D02 X963 — dataprotection.ie.

Cookies

A cookie is a small file stored on your device. We use as few as we can. Nothing except strictly necessary cookies is set until you choose to allow it — analytics and advertising stay switched off, and their scripts are not even loaded, until you accept them in the banner.

Cookie / storageSet byPurposeLifetime
ew_cookie_consent_v1This site (necessary)Remembers your cookie choice so we stop asking6 months
ew_conv_*This site (necessary)Stops one action being counted twice in the same visitUntil the tab closes
_ga, _gid, _gcl_*Google (analytics)Measures visits and which adverts led to an applicationUp to 2 years
_fbp, frMeta (advertising)Measures which of our job adverts brought you hereUp to 3 months

Changing your mind

Select Cookie settings at the bottom of any page to change or withdraw your choice. Withdrawing stops the relevant scripts from loading again. You can also delete cookies in your browser settings at any time.

A question about your data?

Ask us directly — we'll tell you exactly what we hold and delete it if you want us to.

Email us