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.
Law no 190/18 July 2018 [Legea nr. 190 din 18 iulie 2018] - 2, 5, 7, 14,
With the law, the processing of personal data is much better defined, the employee is protected against abuse by the employer. At the same time, employers are informed more specifically about how the law regulates the surveillance of employees, in order to have a balance between the two parties.
According to the provisions, the employer can monitor the work of employees only if the following conditions are met: * The employer has legitimate and well-founded interests that prevail over the interests or rights and freedoms of the employees. * The employer has informed in advance, in a precise and explicit manner how they wish to monitor the employees' activity. * The employer has consulted in advance with the trade union or employee representatives before implementing monitoring systems. * The employer ensured that the duration of storage of personal data is directly proportional to the purpose of the processing, without exceeding the legal time limit of 30 days. An exception is made in duly justified cases.
The law clearly specifies the employer's obligation to inform employees in advance of how they choose to monitor their activity. This can be done by following certain steps. * An e-mail will be sent to the employees informing them of the intention and the way in which the monitoring of their activity will be carried out. * The necessary changes will be made in the internal rules. * The necessary changes will be made in the additional documents to the employment contract. * Minutes will be drawn up and signed by all employees.
There are some situations in which the employer must justify the need to implement supervision systems. An example is GPS tracking of the transport vehicle or any other purpose for which the employee works. If there is no reason that would give the employer reason to suspect that the employee is carrying out illegal operations and activities with the company car, then the imposition of surveillance is not justified.
As far as surveillance cameras at the workplace are concerned, employees must be informed of their location and when they are active. It is forbidden to place hidden cameras, as it violates the employee's right to privacy, even if they are in the work space.
The same applies to monitoring activity on the internet and generally on the work computer. This situation is quite delicate, because it is not possible to impose an exclusive control on the way the employee chooses to carry out their activity. Some people may take more frequent breaks and go on social networks, but they do what their work without any problems. In this case, too, the employer must have some justified suspicion that the employee is using the computer and internet for personal, abusive and illegal activities.
Eurofound (2023), Romania: Employee monitoring and surveillance, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/employee-monitoring-and-surveillance/romania
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