The Canadian Perspective on Workplace Monitoring and Employee Surveillance

As a continuation of our series about employee surveillance, I would like to share with you this interesting pdf downloadable paper from the Canadian Law Firm - McCarthy Tetrault - Titled - "Workplace Monitoring and Employee Surveillance" by Christopher McHardy, Tina Giesbrecht & Peter Brady. 

We get a good overview from a top law firm and a Canadian perspective.  Although may I note that this is paper was authored in Western Canada and therefore regional differences in legislation may exist.

This paper looks at the way in which Canadian privacy legislation is influencing the way courts and arbitrators are balancing the right of employers to know and manage, versus privacy rights employees may have in the workplace.

You can download the McCarthy Document here as a pdf document

Workplace Monitoring and Employee Surveillance Extract / Summary

In the last decade, new technologies in the workplace have changed the way we do work and the way we manage employees. Beyond the production and cost benefits, these technologies have both increased employer risks relating to employee misconduct and improved employer tools to manage and address such misconduct.

The increased risks and improved tools have resulted in increased use of surveillance and monitoring and an increase in the tension between management rights and employee privacy. The introduction of privacy legislation in Canada has further increased this tension.

You can download the McCarthy Document here as a pdf document

A New Era

Since the implementation of the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (“PIPEDA”)2 in January 2001, issues of privacy and protection of personal information have become a regular concern for human resources managers. PIPEDA now applies to all commercial activity in Canada except in those provinces which have substantially similar legislation and where the federal government has registered an exemption order. Personal information which flows across provincial or national borders will be subject to PIPEDA and PIPEDA will continue to apply, within provinces, to the activities of federal works, undertakings and businesses such as broadcasting, telecommunications, banking and transportation.

You can download the McCarthy Document here as a pdf document

This Article is brought to you by The Renwick Group - www.therenwickgroup.ca - The Renwick Group is a private investigation firm founded in 1997 and is based in Barrie, Ontario. We excel in delivering our core Private Investigation Services in the most efficient, secure, and professional manner.​