Privacy Issues in the Workplace

an obligation to report an employee engaging in illegal conduct on the Internet to the authorities once that misconduct is discovered via monitoring.

R EGULATION OF P ERSONAL AND O FF -D UTY C ONDUCT

S ECTION 7

Employers are only permitted to control off-duty conduct or relationships in limited circumstances. The touchstone in all of these is job nexus, or connection to the position in question. This section will explore the laws that define and limit the circumstances in which an employer can control, interfere with, or base employment decisions upon, off-duty conduct or relationships.

 Legal snapshot: Personal and Off-Duty Conduct

 Constitutional Right of Privacy, Cal. Const. art. I, § 1  First and Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

 Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964

 Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Cal. Gov. Code § 12900 et seq.  Public Safety Officers’ Procedural Bill of Rights Act, Cal. Gov. Code §§ 3300 et seq.  Firefighters Procedural Bill of Rights Act, Cal. Gov. Code §§ 3250 et seq .

Applicable laws:

 Various other federal and California statutes

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Common law torts

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Applicants and employees

Who and what is protected?



Personal workplace relationships

 Personal activities and off-duty conduct

 Base hiring and promotional decisions on personal relationship unless it would pose an unreasonable workplace conflict or hazard  Base employment decisions upon employees’ personal conduct unless there is a sufficient nexus to the employee’s position

Generally, employers must NOT:

Privacy Issues in the Workplace ©2021 (s) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 160