An employer is free to do so excluding areas where there is an expectation of privacy, (i.e., locker rooms, showers, etc.). Since there is no federal law which requires an employer to announce surveillance or monitoring of employees in advance and an employer may have a compelling business interest in engaging in surreptitious monitoring such as investigating corporate theft.  

However, most employers do provide advance notice of monitoring and surveillance and develop policies to govern these practices. SHRM believes advance notice is a best practice.  Engaging in surveillance activities with no advance notice can be detrimental to the employee relations climate within an organization and possibly result in being counterproductive over the long haul.   A caveat should also be noted here; in many countries outside the U.S., an unannounced surveillance/monitoring practice would be prohibited.

One should also note that state laws governing workplace privacy are evolving; thus, before implementing any surveillance/monitoring practice in your organization, you should present your plan of action to legal counsel to ensure that your practices conforms to any state statute or case law which may exist.

Please Note: This material is provided as general information and is not a substitute for legal or other professional advice. Contact the Knowledge Center for more information.

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