More and more companies are using surveillance software to monitor their employees. This is the conclusion of a recent report. AI in particular would accelerate this development. Germany therefore finally needs an employee data protection law, it is demanded.
In order to be able to take action against the unrestrained pressure of surveillance in the workplace, Germany finally needs a comprehensive employee data protection law. This is the conclusion of a recent report by the Council for Digital Ecology. According to the report, digital surveillance threatens to create a “dimension of alienation between employees and employers”.
Employee Data Protection Act: Digital surveillance is increasing
Various case studies were analyzed as part of the report. These included work in the warehouse of a logistics company, mobile work, and work from home. The result: digital control in the workplace has increased.
The authors focused primarily on automated surveillance systems and algorithms. Programs and IT systems from companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, Google and OpenAI would open up new control options by collecting data from employees.
In addition, many German companies use special software to find out how employees use programs such as Skype, Slack or Microsoft Office. The report therefore calls for a comprehensive employee data protection law that should supplement the Federal Data Protection Act and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
AI as a “surveillance catalyst”
Such a law has been on the agenda for some time. However, the need for it is more urgent than ever due to current digital developments. Artificial intelligence in particular is turning out to be a veritable “surveillance catalyst” in the workplace.
Nevertheless, the report does not speak out against performance monitoring in principle. Rather, the authors demand proportionality and fairness in such controls. Transparent procedures are an indispensable prerequisite for this. All of this could be regulated by an employee data protection law.
The problem: Hardly any other law has such a long history. As the Daily Mirror reported that the then Minister of Labor, Norbert Blüm (CDU), had already spoken of an employee data protection law in the 1990s. Olaf Scholz, as Minister of Labor in the grand coalition, also promised a corresponding regulation in 2009.
Even the current coalition agreement of the traffic light coalition addresses employee data protection. The federal government promises legal clarity in order to effectively protect the personal rights of employers and employees. A draft law is even said to have already been drawn up. According to Daily Mirror However, the FDP is blocking implementation.
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Source: https://www.basicthinking.de/blog/2024/08/05/ueberwachung-durch-ki-deutschland-braucht-ein-beschaeftigtendatenschutzgesetz/
