- Phase
- The Employment Contracts Act (55/2001), Act on the Protection of Privacy in Working Life (759/2004), Occupational Safety and Health Act (738/2002), Co-operation Act (1333/2021)
- Native name
- Työsopimuslaki (55/2001), Laki yksityisyyden suojasta työelämässä (759/2004), Työturvallisuuslaki (738/2002), Yhteistoimintalaki (1333/2021)
- Type
- Employee monitoring and surveillance
- Added to database
- 17 October 2023
Article
- The Employment Contracts Act (55/2001)
- Act on the Protection of Privacy in Working Life (759/2004): articles 4, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21.
- Occupational Safety and Health Act (738/2002): articles 27, 63.
- Co-operation Act (1333/2021): section 12.
Description
The Finnish Act on the Protection of Privacy in Working Life (759/2004) is the most important Finnish legislation related to the processing of employees’ personal data. According to this act, employers may operate camera surveillance at workplaces only for the purpose of ensuring the personal security of employees and other persons on the premises, protecting property or supervising the proper operation of production processes, and for preventing or investigating situations that endanger safety, property or the production process. The data collected through surveillance must be necessary for the employment relationship, protection of property, and ensuring the safety of employees and other persons on the premises.
Regarding electronic surveillance, employers are allowed to monitor their employees' use of e-mail and the Internet, but only under certain prerequisites. The article does not provide specific details on these prerequisites, but it does mention that the monitoring must be necessary for the employment relationship and that the employer must inform the employees of the monitoring.
In short, the so called 'right to manage' gives the employer the right to decide who does what, where, when and how, during work hours. This includes surveillance of employees' work. The right is however limited by employment agreements, collective agreements and other labour legislation. The protection of an employee's personal data, as well as video surveillance, is regulated in the Act on the Protection of Privacy in Working Life (759/2004). According to the Occupational Safety and Health Act (738/2002), employers must constantly monitor the working environment, the state of the work community and the safety of working practices.
The collection of personal data during recruitment and employment is also subject to regulation under the Co-operation Act (1333/2021), according to which it needs to be included in workplace dialogue. This includes the purpose and methods of surveillance by technical means of employees, the use data networks and the processing of employees' e-mail and other electronic communications.
Citation
Eurofound (2023), Finland: Employee monitoring and surveillance, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin,
https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/employee-monitoring-and-surveillance/finland