Employee Confidentiality Laws

When it comes to the workplace, employees have few areas to expect confidentiality. This means companies can read emails, check web logs to determine where employees go when online and can also check phone records and cell phone records, especially if the cell phone in question is considered company property. In addition, companies also can impose punishment upon employees criticizing the company in public.

Confidential Information

While there is no one federal law that guarantees employee confidentiality, employers need to be careful when it comes to monitoring what employees do and say. Recent court rulings have granted employees privacy rights previously not provided, largely because increases in technology and social networking have led to new areas of self-expression. When an employee posts a comment on a social networking site, the question of whether an employer can take action because of that comment are becoming part of the legal landscape.

Tax Information

One area where states have imposed confidentiality agreements on employees is tax information. In states like Michigan, for example, if you work for the state, you'll sign an employee confidentiality agreement that protects any tax information that you might uncover. The penalties for violating the agreement range from paying a $5,000 fine to a maximum of five years in prison. There are lesser penalties in place for accessing someone's tax records without authorization.

Medical Confidentiality

Medical information usually falls under the category of "confidential information," with employers being bound to only share medical information with certain individuals in a company. If an employee has a medical condition the employer is made aware of, the employer should only tell those people in the company that the condition might impact. For example, if an employee has developed seizures, the employer can have a supervisor made aware of the information so that the employee is not put in a position where he endangers himself or others.

Credit Reports

When an employee is up for a promotion, a review, or an applicant is seeking employment, it has become common practice to have the employer examine the individual's credit history. States such as Illinois and Oregon have enacted laws preventing employers from accessing an individual's credit history in order to make employment decisions and more states are considering following suit. The law gives an employer the authority to conduct background checks on the individual but is prohibited from accessing credit records.

References

• Privacy Right Clearinghouse: Workplace Privacy and Employee Monitoring
• Employment Law Information Network: Workplace Privacy and Confidentiality
• Information Law Group; Employee Privacy Gains in the United States; Boris Segalis; January 2011
• Help Net Security; Tide Turns for U.S. Employee Privacy; Zeljka Zorz; January 2011
• Ogletree Deakins: Employee Medical Confidentiality -- A Guide for Employers; Luci L. Nelson; November 2008
• State of Michigan Agency Employee Confidentiality Agreement