Privacy

Text messages and employee privacy: The Supreme Court weighs in

07/20/2010

The U.S. Supreme Court has held that a police department’s search of an officer’s text messages was reasonable and didn’t violate the officer’s Fourth Amendment rights. The court said that even if the officer had a reasonable expectation of privacy in his text messages, the search was motivated by a legitimate work-related purpose and was not excessive in scope.

Feds propose new HIPAA privacy rules

07/13/2010

The Department of Health and Human Services has proposed new rules to strengthen HIPAA’s confidentiality and security measures. While your health insurance carrier will have primary responsibility for compliance, you need to be able to answer employees’ questions about their new privacy rights.

Use social networks to your advantage in employment disputes

07/08/2010

I’ve long preached that employees should not enjoy an expectation of privacy in information they voluntarily place on the Internet, including social networks like Facebook. Now according to one federal court in Indiana, it is also fair game for employers to use social networking information when they have to defend against harassment and discrimination lawsuits.

Review e-communications policies in wake of Supreme Court texting decision

06/22/2010

The Supreme Court ruled last week that a police department’s search of an officer’s personal text messages sent via a department-issued pager didn’t violate his constitutional rights. But the court punted on the question of how much privacy employees can expect when using employer-provided gear. The split decision means your policies are more important than ever.

Hiring from the competition, how much should we ask about any noncompete agreements?

06/09/2010

Q. We are considering hiring an employee away from one of our competitors. Should we ask whether she is subject to a noncompete agreement, or is it better for us to move forward not knowing the answer?

Should we publicly post vacation schedules?

05/26/2010

Q. We post employees’ vacation schedules in the employee lunchroom. Occasionally, outside visitors or customers visit the lunchroom, too. Some employees have complained about this posting policy, saying it borders on invasion of privacy. Are they right, from a legal standpoint, and should we stop doing this?

7 elements of a social media policy that limits your liability

05/26/2010

Online social networking sites provide a variety of benefits to organizations. They can help you collect industry-based knowledge, reach new customers, build your brand and publicize your company’s name and reputation. But those benefits come with their fair share of legal risks. You need a comprehensive social media policy to guide employees on your expectations about their online behavior.

New technologies, old problems: Social media in the workplace

05/18/2010

Social media is on the rise, creating many questions for employers. Should we use social media to develop business or recruit new talent? Should we let employees use Facebook and Twitter at work? What restrictions do we need? Can we monitor off-duty conduct? And what are the potential liabilities?

E-Mail and Internet Usage: Legal Risks & Sample Policy

05/11/2010

Employers have any number of legitimate reasons to monitor employees’ e-mail and Internet usage. Beyond personal productivity issues, you risk significant loss should an employee download a virus or other damaging software or engage in illegal activity conducted on company computers. Here’s a discussion of the risks, plus a sample policy …

Can we use personal e-mails we discovered to defend against former employee’s lawsuit?