Global positioning system (GPS) software and devices can help people locate missing phones or track their children on their way home from school. GPS devices can be convenient, even life-saving tools when properly used.
They can also serve to infringe on personal privacy, especially when people are not aware that others intend to track their activity and local travels. Professionals in a variety of different careers could learn through disciplinary efforts or conversations with co-workers that their employers track them using a mobile device or a vehicle.
Is GPS tracking of employees lawful in California?
Companies typically need consent
California law has strict rules regulating GPS tracking. Generally speaking, tracking people without their knowledge or consent is a violation of the law that could lead to allegations of stalking and possibly even criminal prosecution. GPS tracking is typically only legal in scenarios where people are aware of the tracking and give their consent.
However, people sometimes give their consent to tracking without realizing it. Employers may have policies in their handbooks or contracts that require employee consent for tracking. Employees may have already given their consent to location monitoring in certain circumstances.
Companies may install software on company-issued mobile devices or in company fleet vehicles. That being said, employers should not force workers to install tracking software on their own mobile devices or place tracking devices in personal vehicles without the awareness of employees.
Some companies, in their eagerness to maximize productivity and limit liability, may infringe on the privacy rights of their employees. Reviewing a company’s GPS tracking practices with a skilled legal team could help frustrated employees push back against behavior that may have violated the law and their rights.