Business can't make employees submit to video surveillance: Dutch court
- Reference: 1665380712
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2022/10/10/chetu_employee_video_surveillance_case/
- Source link:
In August of 2022, the employee was required to log on during an entire workday while sharing his screen and being monitored by camera and attending an online training program.
"I don't feel comfortable being monitored for nine hours a day by a camera," the un-named defendant is recorded as saying in a court filing. "This is an invasion of my privacy and makes me feel really uncomfortable. That is the reason why my camera is not on. You can already monitor all activities on my laptop and I am sharing my screen," the employee added.
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The Diessen, Netherlands resident then received two more emails stating the company's demands for surveillance, as well as an argument stating that camera surveillance is no different than physical presence in an office.
[2]
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Chetu eventually received the following notification:
Hi [name of applicant], Your employment is hereby terminated. Reason: Refusal to work; Insubordination.
The Court of Zeeland West-Brabant [4]determined [PDF] that not only was there no evidence of refusal to work, but instructing an employee to leave their camera on all day was a privacy violation. The court cited a November 28 ruling in the European Court of Human Rights that stated video surveillance of an employee in the workplace, covert or not, was a "considerable intrusion into the employee's private life."
"Camera surveillance for nine hours a day is disproportionate and not allowed in the Netherlands," declared the court, which decided there was no question that the employee was working as software installed on his computer monitored his output.
As to the argument that surveillance was no different than actual physical presence, the court established one important difference in the two scenarios: the processing and potential storage of data, which would be subject to the General Data Protection Regulation Implementation Act (GDPR).
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Data storage requirements and labor laws in the Netherlands are very different from those at Chetu's headquarters in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Like most US states, both workers and employers in Florida can end employment contracts without advance notification, for any reason.
Chetu was ordered to pay restitution of $48,660 – $2,600 in unpaid salary, $8,150 for wrongful termination, $9,245 in worker transition assistance, the equivalent of 23 days vacation pay, eight percent statutory holiday allowance, court fees, and late payment fees. The inside sales representative grossed over $68,000 annually with the company prior to getting sacked.
Chetu dissolved and deregistered its Dutch branch within days of firing the employee. According to the court, the company was aware of the case but did not lodge a statement of defense or appear at the hearing.
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The US company's website currently [7]lists ten US locations, one in the UK and three in India.
The Register has asked Chetu to comment on the case, and whether it requires video surveillance of workers in its US or offshore operations. We will update this story if we receive a substantive response. ®
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[7] https://www.chetu.com/locations.php
[8] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Good luck getting the money
The entity is nonetheless liable. If they don't mind not doing business in the EU and having their customers linked with a company with a bad reputation, they could indeed decide not to pay.
== Bring us Dabbsy back! ==
Re: Good luck getting the money
Companies also do 'not' pay in many instances. The legal department can issue which ever blanket legal statement to deflect any talk of wrong doing. PR departments get their spin doctors spinning...
Re: Good luck getting the money
He now seems to be over at Substack, Something for the Weekend now seems to be "Autosave is for wimps".
https://autosaveisforwimps.substack.com/p/shuffling-robots-wont-stop-the-human
I suspect that they were completely ignorant to the the fact that the rest of the free world actually has different employment laws to the US.
And by different I mean "sane".
Indeed. I'm surprised at the almost binary differences between workers and C level people over there. Workers can be booted out at a moment's notice, whereas the C levels always seems to come equipped with a golden parachute.
Probably paid for by all the redundancy money these setups save.
It keeps amazing me just how absolutely shitty US employment laws are. And how seemingly amazed US companies are when workers have zero loyalty for their employer. Not that I have THAT much but enough to trust that shit like this simply will not happen.
I've said it before and I'm saying it again: Welcome to the Nazi States of America. :(
Good luck getting another job
As much as I agree this is the correct outcome it's likely to lead to further problems for this person. Notably, getting another job. Saying you took our former employer to a tribunal never goes down well, even if you were "right".
Re: Good luck getting another job
In the Netherlands this sort if thing is pretty normal, it happens more often. His name isn't widely out there to find attached to the case like it would be in the US (because we have sensible privacy laws) and even if it was, unless his next employer is planning to break the law in the same way they have nothing to fear. The vast majority of dismissals happen more or less amicably without the courts involved, but if a company pulls a stunt like this a fired worker isn't usually blamed for getting what he is due under the law.
Also, asking about or even using something like this against a person when hiring is also considered unlawful discrimination so... few companies who actually now how to operate in the Netherlands would even consider it.. Easier and cheaper to just stick to the law
Re: Good luck getting another job
US labour traditions of absolute power to the employer are not laws of nature. Such conflicts happen in Europe, are resolved, and then everybody get on with their lives. People here, even employers, are not hell-bent on seeking petty revenge for having been wrong in the first place, because it would put them in hot waters, again.
I work from home some of the time. I get asked by my employer to switch my camera on in teams. Slight problem with that. I am using my own computer for work. There is a good technical reason for this. I do a lot of work with VMs and the laptops my company give out for home-working are nowhere near powerful enough.
From time to time, in teams meetings, I get asked to turn my camera on. There is a good reason I don't. I don't have one. The reason I don't have one? I don't have space in my home for a dedicated office, so my PC is in my bedroom. While I don't do anything untoward in my bedroom during the work day, It *is* my private space, and I don't want it invaded.
I think when requiring people to work from home, companies need to factor in that not everyone has a room they can dedicate to it, and they may not feel comfortable allowing work colleagues into their private space, even if it is just looking into it. They certainly should not require you to. What you do in your own home is your business. What you do in the office is theirs.
> I am using my own computer for work...the laptops my company give out for home-working are nowhere near powerful enough.
Check your contract, and any extra agreements you've signed, like IT policies and data protection stuff. Using your own equipment can get you sacked at most companies. If the equipment they give you is rubbish let it slow your performance and make sure your boss knows about it.
You are basically funding their IT department by providing equipment out of your own pay. And you did it the expensive way, paying income tax on the money, then VAT on the purchase. Should be able to skip those for a business expense (not sure how it works if it's half used for personal stuff, probably some benefit-in-kind valuation which will incur income tax.)
I've never put my camera on since WFH, never been asked for it, and somehow, work still gets done! You can provide that little bit of information fo your employer :)
I'm glad that here in France, even constant screen sharing is illegal.
Good luck getting the money
Seems to me "CheatU" decided they didn't need a presence in the Netherlands so they wouldn't have to pay...