Should you monitor your employees when they are working from home?

As the impact of the pandemic continues and more people continue to work flexibly from home, we have seen an increase in enquiries regarding workplace monitoring and what is permitted.

A recent poll of 2,400 workers by the Trade Union Prospect found that one in three workers reported being monitored at work and that 13% of remote workers had a camera installed in their home to monitor working – this is an increase from 5% just 6 months ago.

Can employers monitor workers from home?

Employers do have the right legally to monitor employees albeit this must be done in a lawful way and businesses must remain compliant with GDPR. Employers cannot rely upon a clause in a contract of employment for data processing – notifying staff at home and obtaining clear consent must go beyond that.

What are our legal obligations to inform staff?

There are only very exceptional circumstances where covert monitoring can be permitted – if you need to use covert monitoring, we strongly recommend you seek advice.

If you are introducing monitoring at work and into someone’s home you need to:

1. Identify your legal basis for doing so – i.e. what legal grounds are you using to justify the processing of the data?
   
   
2. For each staff member affected you should complete a Data Protection Impact Assessment – whilst a general assessment may be carried out for the initial implementation you should consider each surveillance installation on a case-by-case basis.
   
   
3. You must inform employees in advance about any monitoring (not just cameras) and confirm:

1. The type of monitoring;
2. How the information will be used;
3. Where and for how long it will be stored;
4. Who will have access; and
5. Notify the employees of their rights of access.

What if employers get it wrong?

The financial implications of breaching data protection rules could be substantial and so it is essential you ensure you have notified as above and obtained consent and that you are processing and retaining data in a legally compliant way.

We can review your current documents or assist you to implement new documents in line with the latest guidance and legislation.

In addition to the legal considerations there is the other softer side of management in terms of engagement with an employee and trust.  

If an employee does not feel trusted at work by their managers, or the Company as a whole, this can lead to a lack of engagement, loss of productivity, increased absence and other negative effects on the business.

The biggest and most likely effect is if an employee is so dissatisfied with the monitoring situation that they seek employment elsewhere and, given the current recruitment difficulties many organisations have, staff retention is an essential part of retaining talent for the future.