A HOSPITAL trust has potentially broken the law and opened the door to the victimisation and blacklisting of workers, the GMB union warned today.

The GMB said private letters sent by Frimley Park Hospital workers to former Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust (FHFT) chief executive Sir Andrew Morris have been handed over to the trust’s current deputy chief executive Janet King.

Ms King, who has been locked in battle with GMB members over plans to outsource more than 1,000 jobs, has confirmed that a large number of private appeals to Mr Morris — currently a non-executive director at NHS Improvement (NHSI) — are in her possession.

Her revelation has sparked concerns among hospital workers that Ms King is now able to victimise and potentially blacklist health workers who may be seen to be “troublemakers.”

The GMB is seeking legal advice over whether this returning and sharing of private correspondence between health professionals breaches the Data Protection Act.

GMB regional organiser Asia Allison said that Ms King “took great pleasure” in telling the union that she was in possession of the personal letters from workers.

Ms Allison said: “GMB are angry and disappointed that NHSI, and/or Sir Andrew Morris are choosing, as admitted by Janet King, to hand back private letters containing pleas for help to the very employer the content is critical of.

“GMB will now consider how we might now best support and protect our members should the trust, Janet King or her managerial team potentially seek now to victimise or silence the very staff that have raised their concerns with NHSI regarding back-door privatisation.

“Every turn in this unfair move to discard long-serving NHS staff into the private sector through the WOS process convinces the GMB that those driving this are the least capable to do so.

“Now we are worried that the partnership between NHSI, the trust and in particular Janet King is questionable and disadvantaging to every member of staff facing being discarded by the trust into the cut-throat world of private provision.”

The trust had not responded to the Star’s requests for comment at the time of going to press.