Privacy at the Office

The issue of workplace privacy has been debated for several years (see Articles section of this site). Now Congress is getting ready to jump in. New legislation has been proposed by members of both parties. The thrust of this legislation is to require employers to provide explicit warnings as to employee monitoring activities. Employer monitoring of employee e-mail is quite common, and employer monitoring of employee telephone calls is no longer rare. Employers monitor employee web-surfing far more thoroughly than most people realize, and few employees have the ability to completely erase files to cover their tracks.

Perhaps inspired by recent reports of firings at Merck for Internet use violations, members of Congress are looking to provide employees with protection - or at lease awareness of - the monitoring that goes on.

Advice

For Employers:
Even without new federal legislation, employers should be giving serious thought to their workplace privacy policies. Applicable state law is already in effect in many places. Consulting an attorney early can prevent costly lawsuits later.

For Employees:
Really sensitive personal communication should be conducted in person and off site.