Hawck and Department of Training and Industrial Relations
(1996 S0150, 31 January 1997)
In this 'reverse FOI' case, the Information Commissioner found that job application material, in relation to a position for which Mr Hawck was the successful applicant, was not exempt matter under s.44(1), as disclosure would not disclose information concerning his personal affairs.
In doing so, the Information Commissioner referred to comments made in Baldwin and Department of Education (1996) 3 QAR 251, that if a job application succeeds, that person's employment in the new position will become, in effect, a matter in the public domain (and in the case of an appointment to a government agency, a matter of public record) and the fact that the person applied for the position can no longer be regarded as information about a private aspect of the person's life.
