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-----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Wendy Clark Sent: Friday, January 28, 2005 11:34 AM To: Syscon-Tx (E-mail) Subject: [syscon-tx] FW: [ALADNOW:748] What privacy rights do libraryemployees enjoy in theworkplace?: New Privacy Q&A FYI -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of Don Wood Sent: Friday, January 28, 2005 11:29 AM To: ALA Advocacy Now List Subject: [ALADNOW:748] What privacy rights do library employees enjoy in theworkplace?: New Privacy Q&A Questions and Answers on Privacy and Confidentiality The IFC developed this Q&A to work in conjunction with Privacy: An Interpretation of the Library Bill of Rights, adopted by the ALA Council on June 19, 2002. Revised January 28, 2005. This document, links to its citations, and other resource material can be found at http://www.ala.org/ala/oif/statementspols/statementsif/interpretations/quest ionsanswers.htm. New What privacy rights do library employees enjoy in the workplace? Employers have a legitimate interest in ensuring efficiency and productivity. Library management has an obvious further interest in ensuring that employee practices do not adversely effect user service or infringe on user rights, including user rights of privacy and confidentiality. But library employers who use electronic or video surveillance or engage in monitoring of computer, email, or telephone use must carefully evaluate these practices in light of both legal requirements and the profession's ethical commitment to upholding rights of privacy and confidentiality. * Legal issues: Few laws regulate employee monitoring in the private sector, although federal, state, and local government employees benefit from some degree of legal protection. However, some state public record and record retention laws may impact the degree to which employee personally identifiable information (PII) is kept confidential. Employee PII not covered by law or regulation must be kept confidential. Further, employees have a right to know what security and information management systems are in place to protect personnel records containing PII, and a right to a clear enumeration of the circumstances under which such information may be provided to third parties. Library policy should call for the release of PII to law enforcement requests only when those requests come in the form of a court order from a court of competent jurisdiction. * Monitoring: In many libraries, employees are required to sign Internet and computing use agreements that differ from the policies extended to library users. However, if a library intends to engage in monitoring of staff workstations or work spaces, it should give notice through a written policy providing: o notice of these practices to employees o notice to the public if any staff user interactions (e.g., virtual reference) are subject to monitoring or recording; and both redaction of PII from and regular purging of all such records o notice to employees if their social security numbers are used as unique identifiers in personnel or other records o employee access to all PII, including any collected through monitoring, and the right to dispute and delete inaccurate data o no monitoring of areas designed for employee health or comfort o no collection of data not specifically related to work performance o restrictions on PII disclosure to third parties without employee consent * Staff with access to employee PII: All staff and any others with access to employee PII must understand they are not to look at any stored information without prior authorization to do so, and in accordance with written policies; and that if they accidentally see any such data (such as electronic monitoring logs, e-mail subject lines, file names, etc.) they are bound by confidentiality guidelines. * Staff use of library resources: All staff use of library resources or public access workstations that is conducted outside of work hours and/or is not directly job related should be covered in the same way that any library user's privacy and confidentiality is protected. For more information on employee privacy rights, and on policy writing to protect those rights, see: * ACLU. Privacy in America: Electronic Monitoring. (Oct. 22, 2003). * ACLU. Through the Keyhole. (July 26, 1998). * EPIC. Workplace Privacy Page. (Aug. 3, 2004). * Privacy Rights Clearinghouse. Fact Sheet 7: Workplace Privacy. (Rev. Sept. 2002). --- ALADNOW mailing list: To Unsubscribe --- To unsubscribe send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the following in the body of the message unsubscribe aladnow _______________________________________________ syscon-tx mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://lists.tsl.state.tx.us/mailman/listinfo/syscon-tx
