Employee Privacy Concerns Arise As Employers Implement Coronavirus Preventive Measures

As countries experience the spread of coronavirus across their respective countries, new employee privacy concerns have arisen regarding the myriad questions that employers have begun to ask employees as they attempt to stem the spread of the new virus.   

Employers Scramble to Implement New Policies Due to Coronavirus

The rapid spread of coronavirus has led to many companies and employers instituting new policies and standards in the workplace as an attempt to cull the virus’s reach.  Because the virus is able to survive outside the body for approximately three days, many employers have asked their employees to work remotely.  

But for occupations that require workers to be present, many employers have attempted to screen employees as they arrive in order to determine whether or not it is safe for the employee to proceed into the building.  For example, many companies have opted to have employees’ temperatures taken as they enter into the building because one of the most common symptoms of the coronavirus is having a high temperature.

Employee Privacy and Coronavirus – What Employers Should Know

Many employers may not know that the simple temperature check of an employee may cause privacy laws designed to protect employee health records to come into action.  This intersection of health and employment law is not well publicized, and as such, it may trigger many privacy laws that employers may not be aware of. 

For example, the mere taking of an employee’s temperature at work typically qualifies as a medical exam, and as such, would trigger the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”).  With coronavirus (CODVID-19) rapidly spreading, however, the Center for Disease Control has recommended that employers, however, take such preventative measures without providing guidance as to whether employees with high temperatures should be turned away.  Because the turning away of employees could trigger protective measures under the ADA and protection from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, many experts of privacy law advise that employers treat any information gathered for coronavirus prevention purposes as confidential as possible.

Key Takeaways Regarding Employee Privacy Amidst Coronavirus Concerns

The global pandemic of coronavirus has caused companies, schools, and employers to conduct new preventative measures that may trigger medical record confidentiality and privacy laws that they may not be aware of.  As such, employers should recognize that:

• the checking of a person’s temperature constitutes a medical exam that triggers confidentiality protection;

• medical exams and the recording of such exams may trigger protection under the American Disabilities Act or Equal Employment Opportunity Commission;

• privacy laws vary from state to state and from industry to industry; and

• companies should consult experienced counsel before instituting widespread policies.

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