For the last few years, privacy regulations have been at the forefront of news headlines, as data breaches and data mishandling has put companies like Facebook and Yahoo in the spotlight. You may be familiar with the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, but did you know California has recently signed its own regulation into law?
In June 2018, Governor Jerry Brown signed The California Consumer Privacy Act, the requirements of which will go into effect in January 2020. While the CCPA primarily focuses on customer privacy, many of the regulations emphasize the new laws regarding employee privacy.
The attorneys at Gokal Law Group understand the importance of employee rights, and will stop at nothing to ensure your rights are protected. With new regulations coming into effect next year, companies should begin taking the steps towards compliance now to avoid potential class-action suits barring the failure to comply with these new standards in 2020.
In accordance with the current legislation, employees are granted the same rights customers are afforded based on the new standards of the CPPA. This includes the right to the knowledge of what information is being collected on them, information about whether their data is being sold or disclosed, and to whom, the right to refuse the sale of this information, the right to be able to request their info be deleted, and the freedom to not be retaliated against if and when the employee exercises these rights.
The act also explains exceptions to the rule. The employer reserves the right to retain information that is necessary to detect security incidents including malicious, fraudulent, or illegal activity. Additionally, California Labor Code 226 requires employers to maintain wages and payment records, while code 1198.5 requires that employers keep personnel files. While the exceptions currently remain vague, the future legislature is expected to define proper internal use of employee information.
Once the CCPA goes into effect, failure to comply could be very costly for the business and violates the rights reserved for all employees. To avoid penalties and potential lawsuits, employees must comply by knowing their own data, updating their privacy policies, and implement proper security of their information.
While the details of CCPA have not yet gone into effect, as an employee you are still privy to many rights often disregarded by employers. If you feel your rights are being violated, the attorneys at Gokal Law Group can help. Get in touch with us at (949) 753-9100 or send us a message.