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The author of this blog, David T.S. Fraser, is a Canadian privacy lawyer who practices with the firm of McInnes Cooper. He is the author of the Physicians' Privacy Manual. He has a national and international practice advising corporations and individuals on matters related to Canadian privacy laws.

For full contact information and a brief bio, please see David's profile.

Please note that I am only able to provide legal advice to clients. I am not able to provide free legal advice. Any unsolicited information sent to David Fraser cannot be considered to be solicitor-client privileged.

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The views expressed herein are solely the author's and should not be attributed to his employer or clients. Any postings on legal issues are provided as a public service, and do not constitute solicitation or provision of legal advice. The author makes no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained herein or linked to. Nothing herein should be used as a substitute for the advice of competent counsel.

This web site is presented for informational purposes only. These materials do not constitute legal advice and do not create a solicitor-client relationship between you and David T.S. Fraser. If you are seeking specific advice related to Canadian privacy law or PIPEDA, contact the author, David T.S. Fraser.

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

Yes Virginia, there is a free-standing non-statutory right to employee privacy in Ontario. Maybe. This month.

In December of '04, I blogged about a case in which an arbitrator ruled that employees in the provincially regulated private sector in Ontario have no right to privacy. (See PIPEDA and Canadian Privacy Law: Employees in Ontario (and perhaps other Canadian provinces) have no right to privacy.) Since this area is consistently inconsistent, here is a rececent decision of an Ontario arbitrator who has decided, yes Virginia, there is a free-standing non-statutory right to employee privacy in Ontario, at least under "arbitral law": LIUNA, Loc. 625 v. Prestressed Systems Inc.

Employees expect their privacy to be protected. Sometimes a tribunal will side with the employee. Sometimes it will side with the employer. The easiest thing to do is assume that there is a right to privacy, adopt the reasonableness standards adopted by the pro-privacy adjudicators and privacy commissioners, and fight it out only if you need to.

Labels: information breaches, privacy