Blog Detail Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce

Submitted by Beyond Rewards HR

Employers that employ 25 or more employees on January 1 of any year are required to have a written policy on the electronic monitoring of employees in place by March 1 of that year. These requirements were added to the Employment Standards Act, 2000 (ESA) on April 11, 2022.

The policy must state whether the employer electronically monitors employees. If the employer does, the policy must include:

- a description of how and in what circumstances the employer may electronically monitor employees

- the purposes for which the information obtained through electronic monitoring may be used by the employer

- the date the policy was prepared

- the date any changes were made to the policy

Employers must provide a copy of the written policy to all employees within 30 calendar days of the day the employer is required to have the policy in place, or the existing policy is being changed.

These new requirements do not:

- establish a right for employees not to be electronically monitored by their employer

- create any new privacy rights for employees

These new requirements specify the transparency employers must provide about whether they electronically monitor employees. When employers actively monitor employees electronically, employers must describe how and in what circumstances the monitoring occurs. The employer must also set out the purposes for the information obtained through electronic monitoring. The requirements relating to written policies on the electronic monitoring of employees apply to all employees and employers covered by the ESA.