Privacy Policy

CONTEXT

The Solving Plastic Waste CRC Ltd (SPW CRC) recognises the importance of protecting your privacy and personal information.

As the recipient of a Commonwealth Grant, the SPW CRC is bound by the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) in the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

The Privacy Act regulates how:

agencies collect, use, disclose and store personal information, including sensitive information
individuals may access and correct records containing their personal information.

Our privacy policy tells you:

how we collect, use, store and disclose your personal information
how you can access and correct your personal information.

We respect your rights to privacy under the Privacy Act. We comply with all the Privacy Act’s requirements in respect of the collection and management of your personal information.

We may, from time to time, review and update this Privacy Policy to take account of new laws and technology, changes to the SPW CRC’s operations and practices and to make sure it remains appropriate to the changing legal environment.

PURPOSE

Our privacy policy tells you:

how we collect, use, store and disclose your personal information
how you can access and correct your personal information; and
provide information and guidance on how to report a possible breach of privacy.

PERSONAL INFORMATION

What personal information we collect

The SPW CRC collects personal information that is reasonably necessary for, or directly related to, its functions and activities. We will only use and disclose your personal information for the purposes it was collected, or otherwise in accordance with the Privacy Act.

When used in this Privacy Policy, the term “personal information” has the meaning given to it in the Privacy Act. In general terms, it is any information that can be used to identify you, whether or not the information is true. If the information we collect identifies you, or your identity can be reasonably ascertained from it, the information will be considered personal information.

The type of personal information we may collect includes, but is not limited to:

name
mailing and/or street address
email address
telephone contact number
age and/or birth date
gender
profession, occupation and/or job title
photographic images and/or pictorial representations
the products and services you have purchased or that you have enquired about, together with any additional information necessary to deliver those products and services and to respond to your enquiries
cookie and clickstream data (only limited personal information may be collected via cookies and clickstream data and individuals who do not wish to receive cookies may disable this function on their web browser)
any additional information relating to you that you provide to us directly through our websites or indirectly through use of our websites, through our representatives or otherwise
information you provide to us through our representatives, customer surveys or meetings with our representatives from time to time.

You do have the right to seek to deal with us anonymously or using a pseudonym, but in almost every circumstance it will not be practicable for us to deal with you or provide any services to you except for the most general responses to general enquiries, unless you identify yourself.

Business information provided to us will not ordinarily fall within the definition of personal information under the Privacy Act but it may do so when the business information relates to sole traders and partnerships. Business information may also contain some personal information.

How we collect your personal information

We will generally collect your personal information directly from you. The ways in which we collect personal information may include, but is not limited to:

through your access and use of our website and web-based channels;
during conversations with you via telephone and in person;
through written correspondence with you, including email;
when you complete an application.

From time to time, we may collect personal information from third parties including, but not limited to:

persons who are authorised to act on your behalf;
government agencies and industry bodies;
service providers to the SPW CRC.

Collection of personal information from a third party may occur if:

you consent;
collection from the third party is required or authorised under an Australian law, or a court/tribunal order;
direct collection is unreasonable or impracticable.

In limited circumstances the SPW CRC may receive personal information about third parties from individuals who contact us or supply us with personal information belonging to others in the documents they provide. This is referred to as ‘unsolicited personal information’. In these circumstances we will consider whether the SPW CRC could have collected the information had it solicited the information and will handle it in accordance with the Privacy Act.

Why we collect your personal information

We collect personal information about you so that we can perform our functions and activities and to provide the best possible quality of customer service.

We collect, hold, use and disclose your personal information to:

identify you
provide products and services to you and to send communications requested by you
answer enquiries, and provide information or advice about existing and new services
provide you with access to protected areas of our website
assess the performance of the website and to improve the operation of the website
conduct business processing functions
update our records and keep your contact details up-to-date
process and respond to any complaint made by you
conduct planning, project development; program evaluation; quality control and research for the purposes of the SPW CRC, its contractors or service providers
provide information to our contractors or service providers to enable them to provide our services to you, including business, marketing, research and related purposes
comply with any Australian law; orders of courts or tribunals; any rule, regulation, lawful and binding determination, decision or direction of a regulator; or in co-operation with any governmental authority of any country (or political sub-division of a country).

How we disclose your personal information

We may disclose your personal information to:

our employees, contractors or service providers for the purposes of operation of our website or our functions, fulfilling requests by you, and to otherwise provide information, products and services to you including, without limitation, web hosting providers, IT systems administrators, cloud computing services, mailing houses, couriers, payment processors, data entry service providers, electronic network administrators, debt collectors, and professional advisors such as accountants, solicitors, business advisors and consultants
suppliers and other third parties with whom we have commercial relationships, for business, marketing, research and related purposes or program
government departments
any organisation for any authorised purpose with your express consent.

Your personal information will not be shared or disclosed other than as described in this privacy policy unless:

you consent
the disclosure is authorised or required by or under an Australian law or court/tribunal order, or
is otherwise permitted under the Privacy Act.

Sending your personal information overseas

SPW CRC will not send personal information about an individual outside Australia without:

obtaining the consent of the individual (in some cases this consent will be implied); and
the Commonwealth’s prior written approval; or
otherwise complying with the Australian Privacy Principles or other applicable privacy legislation.

How we secure personal information

Once SPW CRC receives information from you, the information is maintained in a secure environment where there are strict controls on access to data and information. Your personal information will not be released unless the law permits it or your permission is granted.

We take reasonable steps to ensure your personal information is protected from misuse and loss and from unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. Biannual reviews of our stored data will take place to determine appropriate access restrictions are in place and to archive or delete data as required. We may hold your information in either electronic or hard copy form. Our staff are required to respect confidentiality of personal information and the privacy of individuals.

Employee, staff, Director and contractor information

We collect and handle information for the purposes if recruiting and engaging staff and contractors, and to properly manage the employment of staff and our business affairs.

The types of information we collect and hold include:

employee, contractor personal and contract details
referee and emergency contact details
job applications and resumes for recruitment purposes
Director Identification Number
employment contracts, and other records relating to employment and contractor engagement
salary and leave records
superannuation, taxation and banking details
medical certificates and health related information
information relating to training, conduct and performance.

We will generally collect personal information directly from individual employees, contractors and applicants. We may collect information from other persons, such as supervisors, recruitment agents, and previous employers.

We may collect and use your health and other personal information to ensure the health and safety of your work colleagues, including managing potential, suspected or confirmed cases of COVID-19 or similar medical conditions. We may also collect and use personal information about your family members, or others with whom you live for this purpose.

Your health and other personal information may be disclosed to officers within SPW CRC on a need-to-know basis. We may also need, or be legally required, to disclose your health and other personal information to other government entities, or third parties, including health authorities, for health and safety purposes.

Updating your personal information

Under the Commonwealth Privacy Act and the Health Records Act, an individual has the right to obtain access to any personal information which is held about them and to advise the holder of that information of any perceived inaccuracy. There are some exceptions to this right set out in the applicable legislation.

If you believe that the personal information we hold about you is incorrect, incomplete or inaccurate, then you may request to have it amended. We will consider whether the information requires amendment and will take reasonable steps to correct or update your information where appropriate.

You may request that the personal information we hold about you be deleted from our records. All requests must be made in writing to info@solvingplasticwastecrc.com and we will provide you with written confirmation once the personal information has been deleted. If we are unable to delete your personal information due to legislated requirements to maintain such personal information, we will notify you in writing within 2 weeks of receiving your request.

We will not charge you for giving access or making corrections to your personal information. We may need to ask you to verify your identity before we provide access to your information or correct it.

In circumstances where it is not appropriate to grant you access or amend your personal information, we will give you written notice of the reasons for our decision within 30 days of receipt of your request, together with information about mechanisms available to seek review if you do not agree with the decision.

Reporting a possible breach of privacy

If you believe that we have breached your privacy, please contact us using the contact information below and provide details of the incident so that we can investigate it.

When a complaint is received, we conduct internal enquiries into the possible breach. SPW CRC will deal with your complaint as quickly as possible and will keep you informed of its progress. Once we have completed our internal enquiries, you will be advised of the outcome. Requests and complaints will be treated confidentially.

If you are not happy with the response provided by our department, you can make a complaint to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). You can find information on how to make a complaint on the OAIC website.

Contacting us about privacy

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, any concerns or a complaint regarding the treatment of your privacy or a possible breach of your privacy, contact us via our website or contact our Privacy Officer at info@solvingplasticwastecrc.com or on 07 2145 9200.

PRIVACY RESOURCES

Privacy Act 1988: https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A03712/2019-08-13/text

Australian Privacy Principles: https://www.oaic.gov.au/privacy/australian-privacy-principles