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.
§ 13 of the Labour Code
In Slovakia, the general regulation on the protection of personal data applies (the EU regulation and the Act on the Protection of Personal Data are also directly applicable in Slovakia).
Regarding the monitoring and surveillance of employees, the Labour Code (Act 311/2001 Coll.) has a very brief legal regulation in this regard, quite problematic and unclear (according to practice). This legislation was introduced by Act No. 361/1012 Coll. which amends Act no. 311/2001 Coll. Labour Code and valid from 1.1.2013.
The employer must not violate the employee's privacy at the workplace and in the employer's common areas. It is inadmissible to monitor or record the employee's phone calls using the employer's technical devices. It is also inadmissible to check the employee's e-mail sent from the work e-mail address and delivered to this address without the employer notifying them in advance. The employee has the right to file the complaint to the employer if the principles of equal treatment are violated, if the conditions for the exercise of rights and duties are not observed in accordance with good morals, if it is an unjustified unauthorised violation of the employee's privacy, if it is an unauthorized prohibition to maintain confidentiality about working conditions or if it is a prohibition to perform other gainful activity, as well as if it is a violation of rights and obligations arising from the employment relationship. The employer is obliged to respond to the employee's complaint without undue delay, to make corrections, to refrain from such action and to eliminate its consequences.
An employee who believes that his privacy at the workplace or in common areas has been violated due to non-compliance, may turn to the court and seek legal protection.
So far, there are no known statistically significant violations of the law regarding monitoring and supervision of employees. Even the National Labour Inspectorate, which carries out labour inspections, does not pay significant attention to compliance with the provisions of § 13 of the Labour Code.
Eurofound (2023), Slovakia: Employee monitoring and surveillance, Restructuring legislation database, Dublin, https://apps.eurofound.europa.eu/legislationdb/employee-monitoring-and-surveillance/slovakia
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