As an employer, no matter how much you want to monitor your employees, you need to understand their rights according to California Laws to avoid litigation. While these rights are long and complex, they have been summarized below.

Video Monitoring

You are allowed to install surveillance cameras in several locations in your office premises but you must notify your employees of where the cameras are. It is believed that you should install them only in areas where work is being performed and not in areas like the restrooms or the dining room. And if you need the footage of any of your employees for anything, you must seek his or her express consent before going ahead with whatever you want to do.

It is advisable to get a written and signed consent as a disgruntled employee may deny giving you his consent later and even sue you for the violation of his privacy rights.

Usernames and Passwords

You don’t have the right to ask your employee for his username or password to access his workstation. Even if your IT team needs to work on an employee’s workstation, they can access it through the administrator’s password. When your employee is logging on, you need to step away from him, otherwise you may be accused of looking over his shoulder to get his login details.

Phone Calls

When any official phone call is being monitored, you must alert both parties that the call is being monitored. It is also important to remember that monitoring and recording are two different things. A lot of employers believe that notifying employees that their calls are monitored suffices for notification for call recording. This is wrong. Monitoring may mean that someone else is listening. If the calls will be recorded, you must also state that too.

GPS Tracking

This is a pretty new one and its limit is yet to be fully defined. However, employers only have the right to track company’s properties like cars and laptops. This is accepted for the safety of the properties. You should never track any employee that is not in possession of any company’s property. It means you are already encroaching on the employee’s privacy rights.

Drug Testing

You may subject your employees to drug test before hiring them and you can also subject them to post-employment drug test when any issue that warrants it occurs. Aside the two scenarios, you should never subject your employees to drug test. In addition, if drug test is part of your screening process, you must notify applicants beforehand.

Workstation Monitoring

Although there are several applications that can be used to monitor your employees’ activities on their workstation, you must let them know. Never assume that they will never know. They may find out. A glitch may occur and expose you. Don’t risk litigation.

Conclusively, this article has outlined and simplified the most important clauses in California laws on workplace privacy and employee monitoring. Adhering to them is not an option but a necessity.

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Interview questions are usually meant to establish how suitable the person being interviewed is for the available position. These questions also seek to establish whether the applicant has the mentality that will suit the job. However, some questions asked during an interview can be very personal. But in California there is a limit to the breadth of topics and questions that can be discussed during an interview, as some can considered illegal. These illegal interview questions generally violate the rights of the interviewee and usually seek to discriminate people based on different aspects of their life. This can therefore take the interview in a different direction and may not end up properly checking whether the applicant is a suitable applicant.

What interview topics/questions are considered illegal?

In California, there are guidelines for how to conduct a proper interview followed by a set of questions which can be deemed illegal by the law. Questions about the following areas of a potential candidate’s life that are illegal to inquire about include:

1. The sexual orientation of the person being interviewed.
2. Questions that seek to establish the religious beliefs of the applicant.
3. Questions regarding the applicant’s race or country of origin.
4. Asking the age of the applicant.

What do I do when an illegal topic arises?

It is always important to have done proper research before going for an interview to determine the illegal interview topics and questions that may arise. When one is aware of the illegal topics and questions it becomes easier to notice them while being interviewed. It is also the obligation of the employers to know the questions that they cannot ask the people they interview.

If during an interview an illegal topic or question is asked, it is important for the applicant recognize this and to notify the interviewer. According to California law, the interviewee is advised to refuse to answer the question, and report that the topic is illegal to cover. One should do it in a firm but polite manner without showing anger. The interviewee can also proceed to answer the question and then notify the interviewer that it is illegal if they wish to do so. This allows the interview to precede despite the inclusion of the illegal questions.

The California laws also give applicants the opportunity to file claims through contacting the local Equal Employment Opportunity Office. This particular office will look at the claim and take the necessary action against the interviewer to protect the person seeking employment. Therefore, when interviewing in California, it is always paramount to know the illegal interview topics or questions that can violate the civil rights of the person applying for a job.

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Medical Privacy Laws in the Workplace

Medical records related to a person’s medical history are made when a person receives treatment from a health professional. The same documents can cover medical history, lifestyle choices like smoking or participating in high-risk activities, and family medical history. It is not rare that these include lab tests, prescribed medications and results of a medical procedure that the was received.

Medical privacy represents implications related to privacy for any employee, if there is a chance the employer is accessing this information for some reason. If this does occur, the law in the US state of California is triggered and there are key points of how this takes place.

When Can an Employer See My Medical Information?

The law in California allows the employer to access medical information about their employee, but it must be related to a legitimate business reason. The information can be volunteered, like in the case of sick leave, or it can be requested for things like forms used for workers compensation claims.

In any case, the information can be attained by the employer, but it both must be related to the business and has to be kept private inside of the organization.

Americans with Disabilities Act states that employers cannot ask for medical tests as a basis of getting a job, meaning that tests cannot be asked for as a requirement for employment. Additionally, the same act forbids anyone from demanding their employees to take a medical test as a way of avoiding them from losing their job.

What Is HIPAA?

The federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) represents a standard that is valid nationwide and which regulates the problem of privacy of health information. In other words, it shows the employers how medical records are disclosed and used.

It states that employers must give notice when dealing with written privacy procedures, restrict the use of this information inside of their organization and finally, it asks for the appointment of a dedicated privacy officer and the training of their staff on this issue.

With this information, anyone will be a lot more suited to understand any relevant issue related to medical privacy in the workplace and will allow them to better prepare themselves and protect their personal information in the same working environment.

A business that wants to collect medical information from individuals for direct marketing purposes must first get written consent and must clearly disclose how the information will be used.

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Technology is changing rapidly. Most people have appreciated the use of emails to communicate with their friends and relatives. Emails are commonly used to pass messages in the workplace. It is important that you ensure that your email is safe. You can even consider changing the password of your email from time to time. An employee should never assume that the email that are sent and received are kept in complete privacy from their employers.

Under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), it provides for implied authorization to review employees’ emails. It also states that a company should state their policy of monitoring e-mails in the company handbook. Since new technologies are coming up, employers now have the options to monitor their employees when they use their phones, computer terminals, emails, voicemails and even when the employee is using the internet. Unless the employee’s company policy states otherwise, an employer can readily listen, watch and even read most of the communications conducted by an employee during the course of their work day.

You will realize that recent surveys actually show that majority of employers monitor their employee’s activity in the workplace. Employer monitor the websites their employee’s visit in order to prevent inappropriate surfing. The survey further shown that 65% pf employers use software to block connections to websites deemed off limits to employees.

You will realize that E-mail is not normally considered private if the email system is used at a company that is owned by the employee. He or she can review its content from time to time. In this case, you should not expect a lot privacy when it comes to email communications. Emails that are actually sent within the company are subject to monitoring. In addition, emails that are sent from the employee’s terminal to another company are subject to monitoring. These emails include those from Yahoo, Hotmail, AOL and so forth.

If this email is deleted, it normally retained in the memory. You will realize that emails are often backed up along with other important data from the computer system. If the employer’s email system has an option for the employee to mark their email messages as private in most cases, this does not always protect the emails. As an employee, you should read the employee handbook so that you can understand your employer’s email policy. If this handbook does not address this issue of email monitoring, the employee should speak with their employer about their policy for the emails and privacy.

It is worth noting that there is email monitoring in the workplace. You should be very careful when sending emails to your colleagues at the workplace. Your employer might review the content of your email from time to time.

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An employer can regulate employees’ behavior at work but may have limited say regarding employees’ off-duty conduct. Today, employers use advanced technology to monitor employees while off-duty. Although the employer may want to know what his or her employees are doing during their own time, there are laws that prevent employers from intruding to employees’ off-duty activities. For instance; in the state of California, an employer cannot take any job-related action against an employee when off-duty. This protects the workers’ off-duty conduct privacy rights. On the other hand, an employee may have questions regarding their off-duty conduct hence; it’s advisable to seek for legal assistance from United Employee Law group.

Employee’s off-duty privacy laws

There are limits for an employer to intrude some of the employee physical areas when off-duty. However; if an employee is doing some activities that are against the law and can affect the employer’s reputation, the employer reserves the right to fire or discipline him or her. Let’s look at some areas where employee off-duty conduct privacy rights are protected.

Marital status

Employers have no right to monitor if a worker is single, divorced or married unless they want the information to include the worker in health insurance plan. In fact, it’s against the law for an employer to discriminate employees based on their marital status. An employee should check if the state they are working with protects employees against discrimination on marital issues.

Union activities

An employer should not monitor any activities that involve the union. Therefore, employees should hold meetings or gatherings without any surveillance. Likewise, the employer should not send someone to eavesdrop on the meeting conversation. This can amount to serious violation of employee rights.

Political and religious beliefs

The state laws protect any employee from being discriminated on the basis of political and religious affiliations. In fact, an employer should not at any one time try to convert a worker to his or her political and religious beliefs.

Drugs

The employer reserves the right to identify if the employee is using drugs when off-duty. Today, employers have an obligation to ensure they provide a safe and healthy working environment. If the employer is suspicious that you may be engaging in drugs when off-duty, he or she has the right to intrude your privacy and take the right disciplinary action against you. However, this should be done professionally since some employees could be using drugs like marijuana for medical purposes.

Majority of employers may monitor employees when off-duty. However, most companies will state before hiring if they have such a system in place. If you have any questions regarding your off-duty conduct privacy rights, you should get in touch with United Employee Law group for further assistance.

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Every employee has the right to privacy in the workplace. Today, many employers have come up with different methods for searching their employees. On the other hand, an employer has the right to search your office desk and computers. Further, he or she has the right to monitor company emails and company phone calls. However, the employer should not intrude to employees’ rights. In fact, your employer has no right to search your personal possessions like handbags, private emails, personal telephone conversations etc. When working for any particular company, you need to know some of your rights during work searches;

An employer has no right to detain employees

The labor laws do not allow employers to detain their employees when conducting searches. For example; if you are an accountant and the books of accounts are not balancing, the owner of the company should not detain you in the name of conducting searches. Likewise, if an employer keeps the worker away from the area of search or gives mental pressure to the employee, one has the right to sue that employer.

A search should not be done without enough grounds for suspicion

When working for a service company as an accountant, other working tools could be stolen. Since the company has different departments, the employer should not conduct searches to all employees in different departments. It is recommended that he or she limits the search to the specific department concerned like the technical department. Likewise, if some accounting figures are not adding up, the employer should limit the search to the accountant and not the technicians. Searching all employees when there are reasonable grounds to hold only a portion of some employees responsible could amount to violation of employee rights.

Intrusive searches are not allowed

An employer has no right to physically search your body. In fact, there some instances where an employee is forced to unclothe in changing areas. This is not acceptable hence the employee has the right to sue his or her employer if this occurs.

Circumstances under which the employer can search an employee in the company

All employers in private and public companies have the right to conduct searches. However, there are two factors that must be taken into consideration. First, one must understand the reason for the search where the employer can conduct searches to recover some items. Secondly, you should be aware of what the employer is searching. For instance, an employer cannot search for a computer in other people belongings.

In a nut shell; if your rights to privacy are being violated and you have enough grounds to prove it, you should seek for the services of an attorney for further advice. It’s recommended that you understand your rights during work searches as well as your employer’s rights.

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As an employee, you have specific rights of privacy at the workplace in accordance to the federal law of the state of California. You may think that an employer monitoring your emails and phone calls is a violation to your privacy rights. However, monitoring employees and their emails is allowed under the law. Employers have the legal right monitor all their employees’ phone calls and personal emails. An email is an electronic document that can be presented as evidence in lawsuits and government agency investigations, so it’s very important for any company to keep track of all information circulating through its network.

The main reason for employers to monitor employee communication at the workplace is to avoid legal liability and keep track on each employee’s performance and behavior. In order to protect themselves from possible legal issues, employers need to know how their employees are spending their time online. How else could an employer know if employees are wasting time on social media, online shopping, or worse- distributing illegal or pornographic content which could put the company in legal problems? This is why courts in the state of California tend to side with the employer in this type of lawsuits.

Some companies have email policies for their employees in terms of privacy, allowing the company to access personal emails if necessary. Employees must be aware of this policies and sign their conformity with them. If a company doesn’t have an email policy, it’s a good idea for an employee to get informed on how the company deals with privacy and monitoring; some companies allow employees to have a private mail account, however, this does not guarantee you can file a lawsuit against your company if they access your email account. Legally, the company has the right to access private email messages if they have a valid reason.

Almost anything you can do on a computer can be monitored. Companies have the right to navigate through personal emails if there is a compelling reason to do so. Software can be installed to monitor employee’s workplace activities, enabling employers to see what is on the screen, hard disk, and computer terminals of the workstation. Internet usage and emails can also be monitored. The number of keystrokes on a keyboard and how much time is spent away from the workstation can be monitored as well. Employers have the right to record and listen to your phone calls as work, although there are some legal limits. Policies on mobile phone privacy may vary between companies.

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California state laws try as much as possible to safeguard the privacy of an employee. You are protected against access to your personal information by an employer. An employer cannot force you to avail crucial information about your health status and personal information which you will not like other people to know about. But, when it comes to workplace computers, your privacy as an employee is limited. The emails and other types of information stored or send via workplace computers are assumed to be the property of your employer. The organization can easily monitor private information you receive over the place of work computers.

Monitoring Employee Computer Activity

The law in California assumes the employee is acting in good will by monitoring your workplace computer. Remember, you can steal work place information and share with other people who will misuse it. The law allows your employee to keep watch of information which you are sending over workplace computers so that he will know whether you are sending out information which can sabotage the operation of your work place computer. The law is very complex; hence you need assistance from a lawyer if you feel like your rights have been infringed. The employer can as well monitor the information you send over the internet on your workplace to know whether you are doing the work you were employed to do or you are wasting the resources of the company in your personal communication.

Using Your Computer at Work Employee Rights

Different companies have policies regarding office computer use. You are not supposed to use your office computer for personal needs. The employer can monitor the activities on your work computer and even initiate disciplinary actions if you will be discovered to be misusing your work time and computer resources on personal needs.

Email and Privacy

The work computer is the property of your employer, if you send or receive emails via the office computer, then you are risking your privacy because the company can easily read them. Most companies keep on monitoring the email send via the office computers to know whether the employee is working or just conspiring with competitors to bring down the business. Try to limit your use of office computer if you will like to stay safe from personal information infringement.

Internet Usage at Work

Employee internet usage at work is subject to scrutiny. Your employer will like to know what you are doing with work place resources. He can track websites you visited and restrict some sites such as social sites for you to concentrate on doing what you were employed to do in his premises.

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An employee has fewer privacy rights in the workplace than they do in their personal life. For this reason, the employees should be cognizant of what information they display when it comes to the use of computers at work. Nowadays, bringing the computer into play has turned out to be a way of doing business each day. Consequently, various questions have emerged as to the legal rights of the workforce to using their work computers for personal reasons.

Notably, technology has permitted organizations to keep an eye on various aspects of their worker’s activities in the workplace. Nevertheless, although the staff may perceive that such monitoring is a breach of their personal life, this form of surveillance is permitted under the law. Arguably, the employees are motivated to do so over litigation and the enhanced role that electronic evidence plays in investigations by government agencies and lawsuits. Accordingly, an employee can be subject to punishment, or dismissed if they violate the policies of an organization concerning personal computer usage.

The use of Internet at Work

Recognizably, employers can trail the internet usage of the workers, in regards to the website visited, the time they spend online, and their engagement in other activities online such as using the social media. In similar fashion, an organization may prohibit the staff from using the workplace computers for their individual activities or deny them access to certain websites and the internet altogether. To that end, there is no noticeable right to privacy allegations against a company for restricting or monitoring the employees’ internet usage.

It can be reasoned that the law grants the employers the prudence to dictate the policies for the personal usage of workplace computers so as to ensure their security. Notably, if the staff are downloading programs and information on the internet, the workplace computers may become vulnerable to various technological problems and virus. The security may also be regarding the workers violating the confidentiality rules of their enterprise. Another reason is that an organization owns the data transmitted to and from the computers since they own the computers.

Email and Privacy 

If an organization uses an email system, then it is the property of the employer, and they are allowed to review its contents. For this reason, the email messages do not have a theme to any law regarding personal privacy. Therefore, a company is free to read and monitor the messages of their staff, with no restriction. The rationale behind this is that the employers are ensuring that the employees are not disclosing confidential information, and they are productive. Additionally, they also do so to decrease the possibility of any wrongdoing or misconduct by the employees. Hence, a company is well within its rights to monitor the emails of the staff.

Written Work Policies 

In like manner, nowadays, organizations employ written policies concerning personal computer usage. They do so to place the workers on notice of their stance on the use of the workplace computers for individual functions. Importantly, the policies are meant to support the corporations when they choose to punish or even dismiss a staff member as a consequence of using the workplace computers inappropriately.

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A current or former employee or representative should receive a copy of their records by writing a request to the employer. This should not take more than 3o calendar days and should not cost more than reproduction cost.

Inspection Rules

To make inspection possible, employers should:

(1) Keep an employee’s records for a minimum of three years after termination of working relationship.

(2) Have current records of an employee for inspection purposes and upon request by a representative or the employee, he or she must provide a copy of the records to the employees’ place of work otherwise to a location agreeable to the requester or the employee

(3) Have former employees records available for inspection purposes and provide a copy if requested by an employee or representative where they store records or at an agreeable location by both parties in writing.

Employer Compliance with Personnel Files

An employer is to comply only once a year with a previous employees’ request to receive or inspect a copy of their personnel records. A copy of the records can be availed to the employee by mail if they agree to reimburse actual postage charges incurred by the employer. An employer should not comply with more than 50 requests by previous employees to avail copies of their personnel records in a single calendar month.

The employer may take reasonable measure to ascertain the identity of the employer (current or former) or the representative. Before handing over the records for inspection, the employer can obscure the name of non-supervisory employee(s)

Termination and Personnel Files

In case a former employee was terminated because they violated employment relate policy that involved workplace violence or harassment, the employer can comply with their request to inspect personal records by:

(1) Availing the records to the former employee at a place other than the workplace that is reasonably accessible by driving from the employees’ place of residence.

(2) Mail a copy of the personal records to the employee.

If the employer does not allow a current or former employee or a representative to have a copy or inspect the personnel records within the mutually agreed or specified times, the current or former employee or the labor commissioner can recover $750 from the employer as a penalty.

Rights to inspect personal files do not relate to reports, records, crime investigations, letter of reference and ratings that:

(1) Were obtained before the employee’s employment.

(2) Were obtained I regard to a promotional exam.

(3) Were prepared by examination committee members who can be identified.

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