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Privacy

Privacy Laws Protect Most Phone Conversations

08/01/2001

Q. I’m considering instituting a policy at my company that would permit me to record my employees’ phone conversations. Can I record employee phone calls without their consent? —P.C., Michigan

Limit Employee Access to Personnel Files

08/01/2001

Q. I keep on file each employee’s application, résumé, performance evaluations and any other praise or disciplinary records. Do I need to provide my employees with access to their files? And, if so, do I have to show them everything? —S.K., New Hampshire

Confidentiality rules protect EAP counselors

05/01/2001
Employee assistance program (EAP) counselors are covered by the same privilege of confidentiality that’s granted to licensed psychotherapists, says the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. This is the first time …

Lock up your company secrets — or lose them

04/01/2001

Cary and Brenda Jensen worked for the Lodge at Mount Snow, placing ads and organizing bus tours for senior citizens groups. After six years, the Jensens quit to open …

Cyberspace snooping can cost you

03/01/2001
Pilot Robert Konop was so upset with his employer and the union that he created a Web site to vent his feelings, even accusing the company president of fraud and comparing …

Heed new OSHA rules for recording injuries, illnesses

03/01/2001
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is giving employers until Jan. 1, 2002, to comply with revised rules for keeping track of workplace injuries and illnesses. Among the changes, the …

Employees online? Take a byte out of your liability

12/01/2000
No employer wants to explain to a court why jokes like “Why beer is better than women” are bouncing around the company e-mail system. But that’s the position more companies are …

Pitch old records with care

10/01/2000

Q. How long is a company supposed to keep paper records? We’d like to throw out some of our old, archived paperwork. —B.H., Pennsylvania

Don’t trip over wiretap laws

09/01/2000
An African-American worker claimed he “accidentally” turned on a tape recorder in his duffel bag that just happened to catch two co-workers making racial …

Trade-Secret clauses aren’t necessary for all workers

09/01/2000

Q. To protect my business’s trade secrets, do I need to have all my employees sign employment contracts that include a trade-secret clause? —K.R., Michigan