Human Resource Management: Employee Privacy Rights in the Workplace

This report delves into the crucial topic of employee privacy rights within the workplace, examining the delicate balance between employer needs and employee protections. It explores the legal framework surrounding privacy, differentiating between the private and government sectors, and highlighting the role of HR in maintaining confidentiality. The report covers various aspects of workplace privacy, including the use of company-provided technology like computers, emails, and mobile phones, and the legal implications of monitoring employee activities. It also addresses drug and alcohol testing policies, physical searches, and the use of lie detectors and psychological tests, emphasizing the importance of clear policies and legal compliance. Furthermore, the report examines the impact of social media policies and GPS tracking, and underscores the responsibilities of HR in safeguarding sensitive employee information, such as social security numbers and performance reviews. It emphasizes the importance of establishing procedures to protect data and inform staff of breaches, as well as maintaining confidentiality during investigations and inquiries, ultimately concluding that protecting employee privacy is essential for fostering a positive and productive work environment.

RUNNING HEAD: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT 0
Workers privacy rights at the
Workplace
February 29
2020

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Introduction
. Worker privacy rights are the guidelines that restrict how broadly a manager can
search for a worker's belongings or person and know about their private lives, but not in the
place of work. There are certain legal responsibilities in the private sector employees than
working on a government sector, but there are certain company rules, which command many
of an employee’s confidentiality rights. In the companies, it is the HR duty to maintain the
privacy of the individuals at the place of work. In this particular discussion, the concern topic
is employee privacy rights; employee privacy rights include personal material and events at
work.
Privacy rights of the employee
The law does not protect the private companies rather they protect only the
government companies. It is the discretion of the reserved managers to act in good faith with
a worker’s information. Only a law court can need the statement of private information
(Sánchez Abril, 2012). In order to ensure that the delicate information is safe, the new rules
are made by the workforce commission. Examine all the investigations for material, no mail
should be forwarded with a social security number, except the forms which government
allowed outlined in state law.
The private company’s employee information can be disclosed to a prospective
employer. It is not a legal and authenticate practice to give out employee information,
consisting of their communal safety number, birth date, pay level, work calendar or full
name. it is desirable to get written approval from the worker before discharging any
information (Samaranayake, 2012).
The use of mobile phones, computers, and email is permitted in private companies for
its employees. It is prudent that all monitoring strategies be well defined, documented and
given written credit by workers (Yerby, 2013). While using the computer and email strategies
of the company than the employees do not have the privacy on company property when using
the firm capitals. Emails or any kind of mail are measured to be company belongings if they
are sent using the firm’s computer system (Towns, 2012). Usually, managers have the
authority to check and see workers' email, as long as they have reasonable business

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determination and it is been done to check whether any illegal thing is going on or not. For
that, they have the email system that copies all the mails through the system.
There are few restrictions regarding the right to operate its worker’s phone usage at
work, as at some places an employer cannot operate a worker’s private calls, in fact, those
which are made from phones on work locations (Robroek, 2012). A manager may operate a
private call only if the employee knows the specific call is being observed and accords to it.
Private firms do have the legal right of camera monitoring as it is mandatory to put
camera monitoring in order to know all the activities which are happening in the office or the
company. But the camera policy laws must prohibit cameras in washrooms or storeroom
where personnel change garments (Luvaas, 2013).
Drug and alcohol testing
In private companies it is allowed for testing of drugs and alcohol, however, it is not
legally out. Although strategies and rules regarding drugs and alcohol are not applied by law
as to how, when and why workers are tested or not. But to evade legal action company must
have a transparent and clear drug policy. Usually, the managers necessitate their workers to
submit to drug transmission (Ames, 2011). But there is the number of nations laws who
restricted the conditions in which a manager may ask for a test in drugs, and the approaches
they may use to achieve such tests. But they are only done when if it bounds its challenging
to:
 Employees whose occupations convey a great deal of threat to themselves or others
 Employees who have accomplished a drug restoration database or are currently
enrolled in such a program
 Employees who have been tangled in a work-related mishap where drug habit was
assumed
 Employees whom organization trust have been using drugs grounded on bodily
evidence or conduct
A private company does have the policy that permits to search of a worker, like
workers' workplace, belongings including a car if it is on company belongings. As the person
can lead to the variability of legal movements in contradiction of a company (Pacula, 2014).
Physical searches should never be conducted forcefully as they are legally dangerous.

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Lie detector tests
There are many countries where this kind of test is prohibited because of national
security and maybe because of applicants with drug productions and suppliers.
Psychological and personality tests
Although many countries do not permit or take this kind of test there are many who
do allow this kind of test wherever there is a requirement in the company (Peterson, 2011).
In most nations, it is permissible and legal to check employee's personal belongings, if
the employee had a sensible belief of privacy whereas, on the other hand, public employees
revel in statutory protections that protect against any kind of searches.
There are various companies who have the strategies related to restricting social
media, as what the staff can post about the managers of the companies on social networking
sites like Facebook, Orkut, etc. there is a website known as compliance building which
delivers a database of social media strategies for many companies. There are some laws
related to restricting managers from punishing an employee because of activity on social
networking sites separate from corporation time and these activities can be shown as
damaging to the company (Jonason, 2012).
In particular, there are rules regarding the GPS Tracking, managers can use GPS to
monitor workers when they are using the company-owned vehicles, and the manager can also
place GPS on employer-owned gear, where there is no specific need of privacy. There are
laws that do not bar the installation of GPS devices on company-owned cars. Numerous
nations do have laws regarding it but there few nations where it is not mandatory to put laws
from using GPS to track the people of the company. Many managers can use mobile phone
tracking in order to keep watch on their worker's location.
Human resource management responsibilities
Human resource experts must know the importance of maintaining the privacy of
sensitive worker information which comprises social security numbers, performance reviews,
workplace accident reports, previous reports on background, health and wealth regarding
information, pay levels, etc (Paillé, 2014). some legal work, such as data-infringement, and
personal laws for example- health insurance policy and accountability act. In these particular,
it is mentioned that it is mandatory for managers to establish processes and procedures to

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secure and protect delicate worker data and inform staff of any infringement of this intimate
information.
It’s the responsibility of human resource to protect the private worker information,
HR must ensure that it is important to maintain confidentiality about the authority or any
business-related information which is not present to non-authority workers or outsiders
(DeCenzo, 2016). This information could include anything related to business like
modifications of business policies and procedures. Privacy is also critical in circumstances
such as office inquiries or presentation and corrective actions. Maintaining privacy can be
specifically difficult when particular or some inquiry has to be disclosed to others so that all
complicated parties can be heard and all relevant info can be appraised. In the cases of the
place of work inquiry, an HR professional must be able to attack a balance between
conserving worker confidentiality and finishing a systematic inquiry that is transparent to all
groups.
It is not necessary that if the complaint of the employee is made at the place of work,
and no legal action will be taken or their title will not be disclosed as the petitioner.
Moreover, it is essential to deliberate the worker's request, HR cannot always give assurance
or surety related to privacy because of the duty to the manager to completely examine worker
grievances, specifically if the concern comprises alleged discrimination, aggravation or other
legal matters (Hecklau, 2016). It is very hard to restrict the employer's obligation when vital
information is disclosed in order to investigate the complaint. In these situations, HR can
enlighten its responsibility to completely investigate the anxieties- not only for the profit of
the worker but for all the other workers who are facing the same problem or difficulty, while
confirming the worker that the private information which is related to the case is only shared
to those who need to know or those who are solving the case and whose contribution is
essential to resolve the case.
Conclusion
On the basis of the above discussion, it can be concluded that employee privacy right
is mandatory because the lack of privacy in a staffs place of work can obstruct the employed
individual sense of self ability, giving them less control over their employed atmosphere and
instigating their efficiency to agonize. The protection regarding the information of worker is
necessary, as all the workers need a safe, secure and private area in which to handle that

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information and its HR responsibilities to not disclose any kind of information of the worker
so that the worker does not feel humiliated when there is any complain of the worker. All this
should be done in order to protect the dignity of the worker.

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References
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