Legal Compliance Hurdles in Employee Monitoring Rise
Employee monitoring tech sparks compliance challenges in North America.
Why it matters: North American employers and professionals face complex legal hurdles as monitoring tech grows, impacting HR, compliance, and legal teams.
- 67.6% of North American employers use monitoring software.
- Maine mandates annual notice and allows monitoring refusal from 2026.
- Only three U.S. states require employee monitoring notifications.
- Employee monitoring software could hit $7.61 billion by 2029.
Employee monitoring technologies, encompassing video surveillance and productivity apps, are proving to be a double-edged sword for North American employers. While enhancing security, they are raising legal compliance challenges that relate to privacy, employment laws, and possibly even criminal law. Helena Engfeldt from Baker McKenzie highlights the urgent need for employers to understand these technologies' implications on the legal landscape.
The regional regulatory environment is fragmented. As of 2022, 67.6% of North American employers with more than 500 employees employ monitoring software, yet only three states—Connecticut, Delaware, and New York—mandate notifying employees. This means many workers operate without awareness of being monitored.
- Maine's New Legislation: Starting in 2026, Maine's LD 61 requires employers to provide annual notice to employees about monitoring and allows employees to refuse monitoring of personal devices, with penalties established for non-compliance.
- Illinois' Stringent Biometric Law: Under the Biometric Information Privacy Act, employers face consequences for failing to protect biometric data privacy.
- Canadian Privacy Commissioner Guidelines: These guidelines call for explicit consent and data minimization in handling biometric data per PIPEDA.
The employee monitoring software market is anticipated to grow significantly, emphasizing its expanding role in compliance frameworks. Legal professionals must stay informed about evolving regulations influencing workplace technology use, such as California’s AI guidelines and the EU AI Act.
By the numbers:
- 67.6% — North American employers using monitoring software.
- $7.61 billion — Projected market size for monitoring software by 2029.
Yes, but: North American states differ widely in regulatory requirements, leading to confusion and uneven practices.
What's next: Potential updates to monitoring regulations as technologies evolve and become more common.