[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 121 (Thursday, September 30, 2004)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1749]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   INTRODUCTION OF THE EMPLOYEE FREEDOM FROM INVASION OF PRIVACY ACT

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                          HON. THOMAS E. PETRI

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 29, 2004

  Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, today, with my colleague, Congressman Rob 
Andrews, I am introducing the Employee Freedom from Invasion of Privacy 
Act.
  This legislation would prohibit the video or audio monitoring of an 
employee in any area on an employer's premises where an employee 
changes clothing.
  Unfortunately, there have been a number of cases where employers have 
been caught engaging in secret surveillance via video or audio 
equipment of their employees in these situations on the job site.
  For example, the Wall Street Journal reported that 19 locomotive 
engineers sued their employer in Oakland County Michigan Circuit Court, 
charging that their employer had hidden a camera in a locker-room exit 
sign. A worker at a state college was shocked to discover that her 
employer had secretly videotaped her changing her clothes in her office 
after work. A waitress at a restaurant was spied on in the employee 
changing room when she got dressed for work.
  Mr. Speaker, these are just a few examples of the conduct that the 
legislation Congressman Andrews and I are introducing today is intended 
to prevent. The Employee Freedom from Invasion of Privacy Act would 
help ensure that workers can go to work without wondering whether their 
employer has hidden a video camera in the bathroom or a microphone in 
the office ceiling.
  Under the Employee Freedom from Invasion of Privacy Act, an employer 
who violates the prohibition against video or audio monitoring of any 
area on an employer's premises where workers change clothing would be 
liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty of up to 
$10,000 for each violation.
  The bill also authorizes the Secretary of Labor to seek injunctive 
relief against an employer so as to stop future violations of the 
prohibitions contained in the legislation.
  Enactment of the Employee Freedom from Invasion of Privacy Act would 
strengthen the right to privacy at a time when the growing use of 
surveillance technologies at the workplace has endangered this most 
fundamental of American values.

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