On February 24, 2022, Ontario announced that later this month, in an effort to protect the privacy of employees, it will be the first province to introduce legislation requiring employers to tell their workers if and how they are being monitored electronically. If the legislation is passed, employers with 25 or more workers will be required to have electronic monitoring policies in place that are transparent regarding how employees' use of computers, cell phones, GPS systems and other electronic devices are being tracked.
Such policies will be required to indicate:
- Whether the employer electronically monitors its workers;
- If so, how and in what circumstances the employer does this; and
- The purpose of collecting information through electronic monitoring.
If passed, the legislation will apply to employees working in the workplace, in the field, or at home.
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