Monitoring employees on work devices is generally lawful in the US and Canada when it has a legitimate business purpose and employees are told about it, but details matter. Some jurisdictions require written notice or a policy, Canadian privacy law asks that monitoring be reasonable and proportionate, and recording audio or content can raise separate laws. Tell people first, collect only what you need and get advice.
The common principles
- Purpose: have a legitimate reason, such as measuring work time or protecting systems.
- Notice and consent: tell employees what is collected and why, and where practical get written acknowledgement.
- Proportionality: collect no more than you need. Screenshots at intervals are less intrusive than continuous recording.
- Security: protect what you collect and delete it when it is no longer needed.
- Work devices and work time: monitoring a personal device or personal time raises more issues.
United States
Federal law generally allows employers to monitor their own systems for business reasons, and several statutes limit intercepting communications. A few states, including New York, Connecticut and Delaware, require employers to give written notice of electronic monitoring. Other states have their own privacy and recording laws.
Canada
Federal and provincial privacy laws expect monitoring to be for a reasonable purpose, proportionate and disclosed. In Ontario, employers with 25 or more employees must have a written policy on electronic monitoring. Quebec has its own strict privacy framework. Unions and collective agreements may also apply.
How Clockgauge is designed around this
- A consent screen the employee must accept.
- Recording only while the employee's own timer is running.
- A notice for every screenshot.
- No keystroke content, no audio and no video of calls.
- Automatic deletion of screenshots.
See consent and transparency and a policy template.
Questions to ask a lawyer
- What notice or policy does our jurisdiction require?
- Do we need written consent from employees?
- How long can we keep screenshots and activity data?
- Do any collective agreements apply?
- Are there special rules for employees who work from home?
Questions people ask
Do I need consent?
Often, practically yes: at minimum clear notice, and in many cases express acknowledgement. Check your jurisdiction.
Can I monitor employees working from home?
The same principles apply, and a home setting makes proportionality and personal-time questions more important.
This is general information, not legal advice. Employment and privacy law differ by country, state and province and change often; take advice before introducing monitoring.
Try Clockgauge
Clockgauge is an employee and freelancer time tracker that runs on your own computer: timers, consented random screenshots, activity levels, clients, projects and tasks, budgets, payroll balances and reports, paid once instead of per user per month..