Q: How can an employer best guard against misuse of internet and e-mail services provided to employees?
A: Providing employees with access to the internet and an e-mail account may result in abuse. Employees may spend too much time using these facilities for non-work related purposes. More worryingly, these facilities could be used inappropriately by employees leaving the employer open to legal claims from other employees or third parties and potentially resulting in damage to the company’s reputation.
Clearly there is no easy solution to this problem. However, employers can minimise the risk of misuse of internet and e-mail services by putting in place a carefully considered internet and e-mail use policy and making sure that employees are fully aware of its contents. Further, to ensure compliance with such a policy, employee use of the internet and e-mail could be monitored by the employer.
Q: What should an employee Internet and E-mail Use Policy cover?
A: ACAS recently published an updated guidance note on internet and e-mail use policies which sets out a list of topics that employers should consider covering in such policies. While all companies vary and there is no one-size-fits-all approach, key points to cover include:
- the level of personal use allowed;
- confidentiality issues;
- when disclaimers should be attached to e-mails;
- security guidance;
- e-mail etiquette;
- prohibition of offensive or obscene e-mails and of deliberately accessing offensive or obscene websites;
- copyright and licensing restrictions that may apply to downloaded or forwarded information;
- whether use will be monitored and the extent of this monitoring ; and
- the consequences of a breach of the policy.
Q: What are the key legal considerations that an employer should take into account when drafting such a policy and in implementing monitoring of employee internet and e-mail use?
A: The employer’s approach to monitoring, in particular, will require careful thought. Aside from the specific legislation dealing with interception of electronic communications, monitoring will also trigger human rights and data protection issues. Over-intrusive monitoring may also be a breach of the duty of trust and confidence which the employer owes to its employees, entitling the employee to resign and claim constructive unfair dismissal. The employer should always, therefore, carefully assess whether the monitoring is really necessary and how to minimise the intrusiveness of any monitoring carried out. Employers would be strongly advised to seek specific legal advice prior to implementing procedures to monitor employees.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.