Surveilling Employees Erodes Trust — and Puts Managers in a Bind (2024)

FAQs

What are the rules on workplace surveillance? ›

There is currently no explicit prohibition or limitation in U.S. federal law against employers monitoring the workplace. However, federal laws do regulate specific aspects of privacy that arise during the employment relationship.

Ethical use of employee monitoring software isn't only defined by the ways you collect the data, it's about how you're using it as well. If you're only using the software for the sake of using it, or for the sake of spying on your employees, you're wasting your time.

In a time where anyone can look up anyone online, “privacy” has a very different meaning. It is not just that an employer can look for your social profiles; legally, employers have the right to monitor their employees.

How to detect workplace spying and monitoring. Check your Task Manager and Activity Monitor: Look for unfamiliar active processes. This is a good place to start, as most spyware tools will need to run in the background to monitor your activities.

Surveillance has little-to-no impact on the target's life. And is done for a purpose other than intimidation, threatening, or annoyance. Possibly the target never even knows they were watched. Harassment is done in a manner that does impact the target's life.

“It raises our stress levels to be under observation all the time, and it impinges on our sense of autonomy and dignity,” says Levy. “So, managers who over-monitor workers may also see people leave for workplaces where they feel more respected.”

Employee Monitoring Under California Law

Under the California Constitution, employees have the right to sue their employers for privacy infringements, so long as evidence exists to demonstrate that the act violated the employee's reasonable expectation of privacy.

Employees have the right to keep private facts about themselves confidential and the right to some degree of personal space. An employer that discloses private facts or lies about an employee may be held accountable in a civil action for invasion of privacy or defamation.

Federal and state laws. The two main restrictions on workplace monitoring are the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986 (ECPA) (18 U.S.C. Section 2511 et seq.) and common-law protections against invasion of privacy.

How do you get around employee monitoring? ›

Employees can use remote access methods to get around time tracking software. They can work on personal projects during office hours without being observed by using this way to connect to their work computers from home or another location.

Because your employer is providing the communications technology, they have the right to track your activities. This includes your internet browsing, how you are using your computer (including the number of keystrokes and the actual words you type), what you store on your computer, and the contents of your work email.

Workplace surveillance laws usually allow companies to use video monitoring for legitimate business purposes. Contact an employment attorney if you feel your employer is videotaping employees without a reasonable business purpose.

Surveillance and video cameras

While it is not against the law to use video surveillance cameras on your property for security, it is illegal when the recording can be considered an “invasion of privacy,” or recording someone in a context where it would be reasonable for them to expect privacy.

If an employer is determined to use employee monitoring software to keep tabs on what they do during the working day, this is legal. However, it is illegal to mount surveillance tools in areas exclusively for privacy, such as cafeterias, locker rooms, or bathrooms, where people can talk about their personal issues.