The regulatory challenges facing HR departments in 2024

HRD: what are the regulatory issues?

À Remember that the entry into force of the GDPR at the end of May 2018 provides for better processing and stronger protection of personal data. This implies that HR departments must reinforce their responsibilities towards employees and candidates wishing to join the company. HR departments must now ensure optimal protection of personal information and be able to demonstrate this by documenting their compliance. The site of the withholding tax also raises a number of questions. Although it allows for the collection of household taxes at the time of payment of taxable income, the application of this labor reform requires time-consuming technical readjustment and dual responsibility of HR departments.

First regulatory issue for HRDs: the impact of the GDPR.

Under the GDPR, the human resources sector is the focus of particular attention.
Indeed, the personal data of employees and external customers must be managed securely in compliance with the GDPR. Moreover, HR departments that want to be efficient and offer a value-added service have to adopt the right tools, such as electronic signature of employment contracts and automatic document entry tools… which implies the collection of sensitive information that needs to be protected from cyber attacks. HR departments therefore need to put procedures in place to identify and report such violations as quickly as possible.

Strong authentication requirements, such as complex passwords, can be implemented as a complement, as these solutions limit the possibility of attacks. In recruitment matters, candidates have the right to revoke their consent to have any personal information deleted. HR managers must therefore handle this data rigorously and be able to justify its retention. They must also prove that they are using the information for the purpose for which it was intended.

The withholding tax, the second regulatory issue for HRDs: a dual fiscal and legal responsibility

With the new withholding tax law coming into effect in early 2019, the company will have to assume both fiscal and legal responsibility. It is obliged to collect taxes andcontrol the figures as accurately as possible. Indeed, in case of erroneous calculations, the payroll department is liable to the tax authorities. This is especially true since employees are bound to challenge the deductions if they do not understand all the charges highlighted on their paychecks. Moreover, withholding tax raises confidentiality issues since the employer is likely to have access to elements relating to the private life of employees, such as the total amount of household income. This subject remains a very sensitive point and HRDs will have to think quickly about their neutrality with regard to this private information.