Some aspects of employer’s electronic monitoring policy were reasonable, others not, arbitrator rules
Allowing a grievance in part, an Ontario arbitrator ruled that some elements of a substance use treatment centre's electronic monitoring policy, introduced under Ontario's Working for Workers Act, 2022, were reasonable, while others were not. The arbitrator upheld the policy's provisions on monitoring cell phone use and e-mails, noting that, while these provisions required some clarification, they were nevertheless justifiable, as the policy clearly communicated the surveillance to employees, who had the option to use their own data rather than the employer's network and Wi-Fi. However, the arbitrator held that the policy was unreasonable in relation to network and internet use, finding the policy's monitoring of personal use on work-issued laptops to be excessive, since employees were permitted to use work-issued laptops for personal purposes outside of work hours, and ordered the parties to collaborate on revising this aspect of the policy to better balance employee privacy with the employer's legitimate business interests.