New OPC guidance: Privacy in the workplace

On May 29, 2023, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) released new guidance on employee privacy rights in the workplace (the Guidance). The Guidance considers the balance between respecting employee workplace privacy while also recognizing that, under certain circumstances, employers may have a legitimate need to monitor and manage their employees.

While employers may need to collect certain information about their employees, employees will still have certain privacy rights, even while at work. These rights may be rooted in legislation, collective agreements between employers and unions, human rights laws and tort laws.

This new guidance from the OPC provides meaningful context for employers captured by Canada’s federal privacy laws (PIPEDA and the Privacy Act), and supplements additional OPC guidance on managing personal information, including OPC guidance on obtaining meaningful consent and personal information security safeguards.

You can read our bulletin on this topic available on BLG’s website.

This content has been updated on June 13, 2023 at 13 h 25 min.