• What are your legal obligations when employees request their files?
• What records must you keep confidential?
• Are your company’s employee personnel files well-maintained?

EMPLOYER TIPS: HOW TO PROTECT YOUR COMPANY FROM POTENTIALLY DAMAGING EMPLOYEE INTERNET AND EMAIL ACTIVITY

• How does a company stay on top of an employee’s email and Internet activity?

Employers must keep accurate employee files to protect themselves, more than ever before!

Increasingly more employees in the process of or just considering suing their employers are demanding copies of their personnel files*. Demands come from both current and former employees. Your legal obligation to reply depends 100% on state law. Regardless of your state, it’s critical to be prepared for the already documented upsurge in employee requests.

*Survey cited in the July 30, 2007 New Jersey Law Journal, Business Law Section 189 N.J.L.J. 423.

What’s the best defense to employment-related litigation?

The best defense any employer has against employment-related litigation is proper documentation. A whole range of laws govern the kind of records you must keep and how they should be maintained, and sometimes it’s difficult to know what your responsibilities are.
Once you know which records are required, you can probably comply virtually immediately. If not right away, you can begin new processes fairly easily to create proper documentation*.

*Laws change continuously. Be sure to have a process in place to stay abreast of new requirements.

Do all companies have to give employees copies of their personnel files?

It depends on the state! For example, New Jersey does not have a law that guarantees employees access to their personnel files. On the other hand, Pennsylvania does.
Employers in Pennsylvania must, at reasonable times and upon request of an employee, permit employees to inspect personnel files to determine the employees’ own qualifications for employment, promotion, additional compensation, termination or disciplinary action.

Should companies keep one file for each employee?

Absolutely not because certain documents that need to be kept in a confidential manner.

Documents to keep seperate and confidential include:

• Medical information
• I-9 files
• Worker's Compensation information obtained from credit checks
• Correspondence regarding litigation or investigation
• Documentation concerning child support orders or garnishments
• Material used by the Company to plan future operations (layoffs)

Should employers just “give up” if they have never started proper personnel files?

Not keeping proper personnel files or not correctly updating an employee’s file is simply not a viable option today. “Doing nothing” can create legal landmines for employers.
What’s more, creating these files, if you’ve never done so before, might sound overwhelming, but it’s really not onerous. Most employers already have the documents in-house somewhere.
A little bit of time invested into properly keeping these files can save a company a lot of money and time in the long run. It is never too early to be prepared.

If you have any questions, please call us at 856.866.1990, or email us at assistance@blclegal.com.

Companies face issues when employees use employer-owned technology!

Most every company would respond resoundingly “yes” if asked whether employees use email, the Internet and computers to conduct company business.
But, companies would not respond nearly so unanimously if asked whether they were fully protected from all employee computer activity.
Today, companies face multiple areas of concern when employees use technology. One obvious concern is safeguarding of confidential and proprietary information.
The focus of this article is another significant concern – employees’ improper use of email and the Internet.

How does a company stay on top of an employee’s email and Internet activity?

Employers may find it daunting to be “big brother,” overseeing employees’ activity on the Internet, and email.

In determining how to deal with employee use of company computer systems, including Internet and email, you as an employer will need to consider several steps:

• when can you legally monitor computer sites?
• when will you actually monitor these sites?
• how will you notify employees of your intent to monitor?

Then, an appropriate and well-communicated policy needs to be drafted.

Even more overwhelming is overseeing activity when employees’ usage is after hours.
Have you considered your employees’ ability to access and post on external Websites? The information they could post about your company’s hard-earned reputation can be quite damaging and ruinous. Whether during or after business hours, employees’ computer activity puts employers at risk and forward thinking employers need to take action.

What can an employer do to prevent employee postings on the internet?

An easy and NECESSARY first step to protect yourself is to establish in your well-drafted and well-communicated policy what is and IS NOT permitted during and after working hours. After all, safeguarding your company’s reputation is critical.

A good policy will consider use of the company’s computer, email, Internet, instant messaging and blogging. Technology is changing the way companies operate, and your role as the employer is to continue to update your policies so you can be sure your company is protected in an ever-changing technology environment.

Emerging technology continues to drastically change our behavior during and after business hours. If your company’s computer-usage policy does not currently address items such as instant messaging or blogging, then you may not really be protected.

If you have any questions, please call us at 856.866.1990, or email us at assistance@blclegal.com.