Right to Employee Email
Posted in Employee Rights
In case you did not know there is a law that guarantees employees' right to computer usage and employee e-mails. This law, however, is still evolving and there are certain aspects of this provision that are still unsettled.
Still, the fact remains that such a law exists and upholds employees' rights to computer usage and employee e-mail. In his article "Your Right To Employee E-mail" Jeffrey Steinberger explains the current movement of this law, and what are the current trends, so to speak,with regards to policies which various businesses and companies implement. To read his complete article please visit Entrepreneur.com.
Here are some of the items that are covered by this law:
- Federal law prohibits the unauthorized interception of, retrieval of, or access to certain wire or electronic communications, including stored communications such as e-mail.
- Violators are subject to various civil and criminal penalties.
- Once the communications are downloaded to a company computer, they may be subject to control by an employer.
Restrictions on the use of company-owned computers and employee e-mails
Presently companies implement policies that limit that limit the use of company e-mails for business purposes only, and prohibit the use their use for inappropriate purpose such as obscenity. There was a recent case were in an employee was fired for using a company-owned pc for viewing pornography at home. "The employee sued, claiming a right of privacy in personal confidential information on the computer." The court however, decided that "the employee waived any such right when he agreed to the policy that employees had no right of privacy when using a company-owned computer."
Coverage of company policies regarding the use of company-owned computers
This case shows the need for companies, regardless of size, to have clear and specific, "properly drafted, written policies that cover the use of company owned and provided computers and computer systems." These policies should include or should be specific about the ‘location' - whether the company-owned computers and systems were used on company premises, at home or during a business trip.
Steinberger's article also suggests that these policies should -
- Include or should be specific about the ‘location' - whether the company-owned computers and systems were used on company premises, at home or during a business trip.
- Include a specific, express waiver by employees to any right to privacy in information contained on the company computer.
- Contain separate language that eliminates any expectation that information or communications on company computers are confidential and that acknowledges the employer's right to access company computers at any time to review and monitor the contents.
- Separate language that eliminates any expectation that information or communications on company computers are confidential and that acknowledges the employer's right to access company computers at any time to review and monitor the contents.
- Further clearly and redundantly express that all computers are company property and shouldn't be used in any disruptive or offensive ways, such as communicating sexually explicit content, ethnic or racial slurs, or any type of harassing, disparaging, or harmful comment based on race, gender, sexual orientation, religious convictions, and political beliefs or associations. Employees should be notified that the company deems all computer content permanent and subject to retrieval and review at any time.
- If your company allows minimal personal e-mail, you must emphasize that such personal use is subject to all the rules of company ownership, access, inspection and lack of confidentiality.
Enforcing computer use policies and protecting trade secrets
- To enforce these policies, you have to retain the right to possession of all passwords and prohibit the use of unknown passwords or other security features designed to prevent unfettered company access to company computers.
- To protect these rights and to prevent the loss or theft of company trade secrets or proprietary information, companies may want to restrict the use of employee-owned computers on company premises and prohibit the transfer of company-owned information to those computers.
What employees should do
On their end, employees should restrict their own access to employee e-mail and computer content only for valid business purposes, such as when there's a reasonable suspicion of work-related misconduct by the employee, rather than non-specific trolling or fishing expeditions.
