European Restructuring Monitor (ERM)
Eurofound's ERM database on restructuring-related legal regulations provides information on regulations in the Member States of the European Union and Norway which are explicitly or implicitly linked to anticipating and managing change.
CAO 81 van 26 April 2002 ter Bescherming van de persoonlijke levenssfeer van de werknemers ten opzichte van de controle op de elektronische online communicatiegegevens
Collective Labour Agreement 81 arranges the monitoring of electronic communication data in the workplace in Belgium. It regulates the monitoring of all forms of electronic online communication data, regardless of the carrier, transmitted or received by employees in the course of their employment, both internally and externally.
Employers may carry out monitoring for four main reasons: * preventing defamatory acts and behaviours, * protecting business interests, * ensuring IT network system security, and * monitoring compliance with company rules. They may not violate the personal privacy of employees and must act proportionally, processing only necessary data.
In terms of transparency employers must provide detailed information about the monitoring system, including what is being monitored, why, the duration of monitoring, data storage, and whether monitoring is permanent. Rights, obligations, prohibitions, and sanctions must be communicated, both individually and collectively.
In case of violations, the employer must discuss the infringement with the offender, giving the employee the opportunity to justify their actions and prevent future violations.
CA 81 does not regulate how access to and the use of online communication tools in the company should be governed; this remains the responsibility of the employer.
The standards in CA 81 can be clarified, supplemented, and adapted to specific situations at the sector and/or company level.
Since it is a National level collective agreement, all social partners had to formally agree with the CA before signing.
Eurofound (2023), Belgium: Employee monitoring and surveillance, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/employee-monitoring-and-surveillance/belgium
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