While many human resources managers spend sleepless nights worrying about the negative things employees may be posting on the Internet about them, this post from our sister blog technologylawsource.com reminds us that the nice things they have to say can get employers into trouble as well. Lesson for employers: Make sure your social media policy
privacy
Facebook Announces New Privacy Controls
By Brian Hall on
Facebook has announced that it is implementing new privacy controls beginning today that will give its more than 350 million users more control over the privacy of what they post to their Facebook pages.
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HR Files Vulnerable to Misuse by Insiders
By Brian Hall on
A recent Washington Post article higlights the vulnerability of HR files to misuse by insiders.
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Union’s “Tagging” Tactics Violate Employee Privacy Rights
By Brian Hall on
This week, the Third Circuit found that UNITE union organizers’ efforts in recording license plate numbers at a Cintas Corporation facility in Pennsylvania did not constitute a “permissible use” under the Drivers’ Privacy Protection Act and remanded the class action case filed by employees (and relatives and friends of employees whose license plates were also recorded) back to the district court for further consideration.
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Sixth Circuit Applies Balancing Test In Retaliation Case Involving an Employee’s Disclosure of Confidential Documents
By Porter Wright on
A recent Sixth Circuit decision addressed the issue of whether the disclosure of confidential, proprietary documents by an employee to her attorneys constitutes a protected activity for which the employee cannot be terminated or otherwise disciplined. In 2000, numerous individuals filed a class action against the Cincinnati Insurance Company (CIC), alleging that CIC had discriminated against women in violation of the Equal Pay Act (EPA). Kathy Niswander, a claims manager at CIC, was one of the plaintiffs in the class action.
In order to respond to CIC’s discovery requests, the plaintiffs’ attorneys asked each of the plaintiffs, including Ms. Niswander, to send them any documents in their possession that related to the case or that might support their discrimination claims. In response, Ms. Niswander sent the attorneys any documents she had that could potentially be relevant, but she also submitted confidential claim-file documents that did not contain any information relevant to the alleged discrimination.…