Maine Restricts Employers’ Surveillance of Employees

The details

Legislative Document 61
 Under the law, employers are prohibited from using:

• “Employer surveillance,” unless they notify the employee before doing so. The required notice must be in writing and furnished to current employees at least once per calendar year. An employer using surveillance must also inform applicants of such during the interview process.
  
  
• Audiovisual monitoring in an employee's residence or personal vehicle or on the employee's property as a means of surveillance, unless such monitoring is required by the employer for the duties of the job.
  
  

Employer surveillance is defined as the monitoring of an employee through the use of an electronic device or system, including, but not limited to, the use of a computer, telephone, wire or radio or an electromagnetic, photoelectronic or photo-optical system.

Employees are entitled to decline an employer’s request to install data collection or transmission applications on the employee's personal electronic devices for the purposes of employer surveillance.

Exceptions
The law doesn’t apply to:

• The use of surveillance cameras for security or safety purposes or the use of global positioning system tracking or other safety devices on vehicles owned by the employer but operated by the employee.
  
  
• Employer surveillance that has been installed or caused to be installed by an employer, patient, client or unpaid caregiver in a setting in which “personal care services” are expected to be provided by an employee.

Personal care services are defined as those provided by a licensed personal care agency and include, but aren’t limited to, services related to activities of daily living, household tasks, and medication reminders.

Next steps
Maine employers should comply with all notice requirements and restrictions and train supervisors on the law.