Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Scheme?

The Misconduct Disclosure Scheme is an initiative aiming to stop known perpetrators of sexual misconduct moving between organisations. It provides you with tools, which allow you to strengthen your referencing practices. Read more here.

What are the commitments of the Scheme?

The Scheme consists of two main commitments:

• a commitment to systematically check with previous employers about any SEAH issues relating to potential new hires - in practice, this means making sure that you request references for all new hires using our Statement of Conduct,

• a commitment to respond systematically to such checks from others.

In addition to these commitments, all organisations implementing the Scheme are expected to adhere to annual reporting requirement by submitting Implementation Data in January each year.

What should I do before signing up?

Make sure that your organisation is able to meet Scheme’s requirements (in practice this means having processes in place which allow your organisation to request and provide information related to sexual misconduct).

How to sign up to the Scheme?

To sign up to the Scheme and become a member, organisations must contact the MDS Coordinator from the official email account of the head of the organisation (usually the CEO, President or Secretary-General) confirming that they formally endorse the Scheme and commit the organisation to implementing it.

Which organisations are already implementing the MDS?

You can find the list of all our members here.

Can organisations different than NGOs sign up to the Scheme?

The Scheme is open for all types of organisations.

Can I sign up if my organisation works in development and does not work in emergencies or respond to humanitarian crisis?

The Scheme is open for all types of organisations, it is not meant for humanitarian organisations only.

Will the Scheme work for me if I’m a small/medium/large organisation?

All types of organisations can sign up to the Scheme – we have a mix of various organisations, with the smallest having less than 10 employees and the biggest tens of thousands.

Can an organisation withdraw from the MDS?

The participation in the MDS is voluntary and organisations can withdraw at any time. To withdraw from the Scheme an organisation must contact MDS Coordinator from the official email account of the head of the organisation (usually the CEO, President or Secretary-General) confirming their decision.

Are there any reporting obligations?

We ask our members to track some top-line data related to implementation of the MDS. You can find past reports here.

More information is available below, in the section related to annual reporting.

Is there a membership/subscription fee?

There is currently no subscription or other cost to signing up. There may be some costs involved in improving internal HR processes, record keeping, hiring systems and staffing.

There are some organisations who have limited resources and lower capacity. Is it feasible and recommended for them to sign up to the MDS?

It is recommended that all organisations sign up and implement the MDS, as it helps strengthen their recruitment practices. Our current members are very diverse, and their capacities vary from less than 10 to thousands of employees.

What is the governance process for the Scheme?

Initially all decisions related to the Scheme have been made amongst its members. To ensure that the Scheme can adapt and improve over time, while supporting large numbers of Implementing Organisations, governance process has been introduced. The Advisory Panel (the MDS governance body) has been established in 2020. You can read more about the AP remit and members here.

Disclaimer: The materials available on this website are for information purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. Agencies implementing the scheme are advised to check specifics with their legal advisor.

Coming soon… quick links and top tips on the legal side of implementation:

• legal mapping,

• obtaining legal advice: what to consider?,

• data protection - GDPR and other regulations explained,

• risk perception.

What legal aspects should be considered before joining the Scheme?

Before implementing the Scheme, each organisation should asses all legal regulations applicable in the locations in which the Scheme will be implemented. Usually, these are the data protection regulation and national labour law applicable in any given jurisdiction. The European Data Protection Regulation has been explicitly taken into consideration at the time when the Scheme has been developed, see more below.

You can find additional information on legal requirements in different jurisdictions here.

Is MDS meeting GDPR’s requirements?

The GDPR has been specifically taken into account in development of the Scheme.

Examples of how the Scheme is meeting the GDPR requirements:

• personal data requested as part of implementation of the Scheme: the MDS requires all members to request some top-line information related to history of sexual misconduct.

  The Scheme’s principles around the processing of personal data and recommended processes to request, transfer and obtain such data are meant to bring the Scheme in line with GDPR requirements. This is achieved by ensuring fair, transparent and proportionate processing of data, protecting the information processed and maintaining the rights of data subjects.

• basis for processing personal data: Implementing Organisations consider that the lawful basis for processing personal data in this context is the legitimate interests of the implementing organisations and, to a certain extent, the public interest of protecting potential victims.

• consent for processing personal data: The Scheme emphasises that all candidates should be duly informed, as hires, by their current employer, and as candidates, by their prospective employer, of the existence of the Scheme, and the modalities of its application. All members are encouraged to take necessary measures to that end, including by ensuring that hires acknowledge their understanding of the process and, where possible, confirm that they agree with it. More generally, implementing organisations are encouraged to raise awareness and communicate about this Scheme, both internally and externally.

• storage of personal data: there is a distinction between two sets of data - the Scheme implementation data (controlled and processed by SCHR) and misconduct data which includes data about individual staff members who may have been disciplined for misconduct (controlled and processed by the individual Implementing Organisations according). The second category of data is controlled and processed by relevant Implementing Organisations, in accordance with their internal policies and procedures).

• risk assessment: conducting a Data Protection Impact Assessment is a legal requirement for any type of processing that is likely to result in a high risk to the rights and freedoms of individuals. It can reassure individuals that you are protecting their interests and have reduced any negative impact on them as much as you can.

  Conducting and publishing a DPIA can also improve transparency and make it easier for individuals to understand how and why you are using their information.

  The purpose of a DPIA is to help analyse, identify and minimise data protection risks of a project or plan. It is a key part of accountability obligations under GDPR. The DPIA does not have to eradicate all risk but should help minimise and determine whether the level of risk is acceptable in the circumstances, considering the benefits of what you want to achieve.

  A copy of DPIA is available here.

What should we do if according to the country labour law we cannot disclose misconduct data?

Please refer to the legal information available on our website to see if other members identified similar challenges. If the advice you’ve received is contrary to what’s stated on the website, please contact the MDS Coordinator.

Is there a legally formal way for the candidate to give their consent to carry out reference checks?

All prospective employers need to secure candidate’s consent before starting any reference checks. The easiest way is to request this as part of the application process.

Very often, if no such consent is given, this will automatically exclude the candidate from recruitment process as this is a red flag.

If you are the organisation giving references, you are covered by the new employer, who is responsible for requesting the candidate’s consent.

Current staff

Make sure to inform your newly appointed staff that you are part of the Scheme and will provide references to all future employers they might have.

Is MDS a central database?

MDS is not a central database - it provides you with a legally robust template (Statement of Conduct), which allows you to request information on any instances of sexual misconduct which may have been committed by your new hires.

Is the misconduct data shared with or requested by the MDS Coordinator/SCHR?

Misconduct data is not shared with (or requested from) SCHR. The data is exchanged between the recruiting organisation and past employers.

Is misconduct data requested only from organisations who adhere to the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme?

No, the misconduct data must be requested from all past employers within the period of minimum 5 years looking back.

How to request data on sexual misconduct?

Once you signed up to the Scheme and established your internal processes, you can start using the Scheme in practice. To request the data on sexual misconduct, contact the past employers, ensuring that the checks cover at least 5 years, using either the Scheme’s registry or contacts provided by the candidate (for non-implementing organisations).

Should we use the MDS for volunteers?

We encourage all our members to use MDS for conducting checks for all their new hires. We recognise that conducting checks for some categories of staff (e.g. volunteers, consultants), may be more difficult and that’s why it is not obligatory to undertake them.

Should we use the MDS for consultants/contractors?

We encourage all our members to use MDS for conducting checks for all their new hires. We recognise that conducting checks for some categories of staff (e.g. volunteers, consultants), may be more difficult and that’s why it is not obligatory to undertake them.

Who should be the person carrying out those checks in your organisation?

It should be the person who is already in charge of the recruitment process inside your organisation. Usually this is done by the HR team.

Sometimes it is difficult to check references for candidates coming from abroad, or it is not possible to find past employers.

The suggestion is to go back to any previous employer you can find, and to put in place risk mitigation measures (i.e. conditional contracts, close supervision, self-declaration etc.).

What should we do if we do not receive misconduct data due to no response from previous employers?

If you are not hearing back, you could reach out to colleagues or via their website or check with the candidate if they can provide any other contact details, exactly as you would for other missing references. In case of other Implementing Organisations, given that they commit to responding, contact the MDS Coordinator if you are not hiring back from a Scheme member.

Can the Scheme be used to screen current staff who have already been employed?

Yes, provided you ask your staff to give you their consent so that you are covered when it comes to data protection. The time and effort required depends on the size of the organisation. This has been done by some Scheme members.

Some organisations have very minimal/poor capacity to conduct an objective safeguarding investigation, how does the MDS addresses this?

There is very limited evidence of stunted careers, and lots of evidence of abusers being in some cases re-hired. In practice, information is only shared if the HR professional concerned has some confidence in its robustness, and the new hiring manager will make their own judgements based on their knowledge of the referring organisation - the sharing and hiring decisions remain your own.

My organisation may use different definitions of sexual misconduct than other organisations, which may lead to misunderstandings. How does the MDS addresses this issue?

The MDS allows you to ask what are the definitions the past employer(s) is using. If you have nay doubts, contact the organisation who gave the reference directly.

Can I speak with another member to learn from their experiences?

We hope that our members will be able to connect with each other and exchange information – we are meeting twice annually to give everyone opportunity to connect.

You can also contact the MDS coordinator and ask to be connected with other members.

What needs to be tracked?

Every year, we ask all Implementing Organisations to submit the following data:

• the number of recruitments conducted,

• the number of requests for misconduct data made,

• the number of responses to those misconduct data requests received,

• the number of hires rejected based upon negative or absent misconduct data.

The data needs to be submitted by 31st January every year, you will be contacted by the MDS Coordinator well in advance.

The good practice is to ensure that the data is tracked from the 1st day of implementation.

You can see past reports here.

How are other organisations tracking implementation data? (Format, what team is in charge).

The data is usually tracked by HR team responsible for conducting referencing checks, in some instances the reports can be generated from the HR software used by some organisations. Smaller organisations tend to track the data using simple Excel Spreadsheet, such as this one.

Is there a standard form to submit implementation data?

You will be contacted by the MDS Coordinator with relevant link at the end of each year.

Who is SCHR?

The Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response (SCHR) is a voluntary alliance of nine of the world’s leading humanitarian organisations, which come together to support quality, accountability and learning in humanitarian action.

The scale and reach of its members’ work mean that SCHR can provide unique insights on what is working well, what needs improvement and what can be done to ensure that aid efforts have the most positive impact for people affected by crisis or people at risk of crisis. SCHR structures its work around operational policy, quality and accountability and interaction with the United Nations.

What is SCHR’s link to the MDS?

The Scheme has been developed by SCHR Members, as Sexual exploitation and abuse has had a huge and ongoing impact on NGOs and their ability to respond to humanitarian needs. SCHR identified movement of serial abusers as an area where they could have concrete impact for the wider community.

SCHR Members, together with 5 additional organisations (ICVA, InterSOS, Islamic Relief Worldwide, Plan International, VSO), have been the first members of the MDS, piloting the MDS in its initial stages.

The Scheme is facilitated by the SCHR.

The MDS is one of the several Employment Cycle initiatives - you can read more about them below.

Aid Worker Registration Scheme

Pilot launching soon!

Project Soteria

Project Soteria aims to prevent sexual offenders from using their positions to access and offend against children and vulnerable adults and to strengthen the capacity of law enforcement to investigate, prosecute and arrest those who abuse aid recipients. Learn more.

Clear Check (UN-specific)

Clear Check is a centralised database, containing information on current and past UN-employees who have been found guilty of committing sexual exploitation, abuse or harassment. Learn more.