Employee Privacy in the Workplace

Privacy has become one of the most important human rights issues of the modern age. One of the main reasons for this is the increased sophistication of surveillance and information technology with its powerful capacity to collect, analyse and disseminate information about individuals. Developments in medical research, telecommunications, advanced locator systems and financial transfers have also served to make the identity and profile of individuals highly visible.

The aim of this Supplement is to provide a detailed analysis of privacy issues in the workplace and, within the framework provided by that analysis, examine why employers may wish to conduct workplace surveillance and the legal dangers they may face when doing so.

• Chapter 1 looks at the definition of ‘privacy’ and discusses the extent to which specific aspects of a right to privacy have been recognised at common law.
• Chapter 2 is concerned with the concept of the right to private life guaranteed by Article 8 of the European Convention. The importance of Article 8 has been heightened by the enactment of the Human Rights Act 1998, which implemented the European Convention into UK law with effect from 2 October 2000.
• Chapter 3 draws the strands of the two previous chapters together to examine how a right to privacy applies in an employment context.
• Chapter 4 focuses on the role of surveillance technologies within the workplace and the particular legal dangers these present while
• Chapter 5 provides an in-depth analysis of the legal issues surrounding computer use by employees (in particular, the Internet and e-mails). The issues covered include the legal liabilities to which employers make themselves susceptible by giving employees widespread access to electronic media; the new statutory provisions governing the interception of electronic communications and the processing of personal data; and the drafting and enforcement of workplace policies designed to minimise the risks faced by employers.

This Supplement was published in June 2001.