| |
|
|
| Employee Handbook |
| Reasonable Search and Seizure: Protect your employees’ 14th amendment rights |
Does an employee’s desk belong to her or to the employer? Where do you draw the line if you suspect an employee of keeping evidence of misconduct locked in his office file cabinet? What recourse do you have if you find documents in the office garbage that suggests an employee is communicating information that might compromise company security?
A recent federal appeals court decision suggests that employers do have a right to reasonable searches of an employee’s worksite, provided that some strict regulations are followed. According to a related article in the HR Wire, “the court says the proper test is whether the search is justified from its inception and reasonable in scope.”
The phrase “justified from its inception” means basically that the search is undertaken because there is suspicion of misconduct. In other words, it would be illegal to go through an employee’s desk looking for a highlighter pen, find pornographic documents, and then take action.
The phrase “reasonable in scope” refers to the fact that there are items an employer would not be justified in searching. The court ruling specifically excluded from a legal search any “closed personal containers, such as locked luggage or purses that just happen to be in the workplace.”
All court rulings regarding employee privacy would be made on a case by case basis, and as you might guess, the legal ramifications of differing situations would vary vastly. Be sure you consult with reliable legal counsel before attempting any search.
| |
|
|
 |
