Don't Wait for Maine's Governor to Plan for Workplace Surveillance Bill, Says Lawyer
A workplace surveillance bill sitting on the Maine governor’s desk requires preparation from employers now, Fisher Phillips privacy attorney Pawel Binczyk said in a blog post Monday.
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The Maine legislature last May passed LD-61 in split votes. The House voted 73-63, while the Senate voted 20-14 for the bill. The legislation would require employers to notify employees before electronically monitoring them.
“Due to the bill’s late passage, the Legislature’s adjournment, and parliamentary rules, LD 61 will sit on the Governor’s desk until the next legislative session convenes in January,” wrote Binczyk. “If Governor Mills does not veto the legislation within the first three days of that session, it will automatically become law and take effect 90 days after the conclusion of the next session -- in approximately the late summer or early fall of 2026.”
Rather than wait for that process to play out, Binczyk said, “employers should plan for possible impacts on their operations and policies.”
Surveillance under the law includes monitoring through electronic devices or systems but not security cameras when used for a security or safety purpose, noted Binczyk. It also wouldn’t cover GPS on employer-owned vehicles, he said. However, the law applies to public and private sector employers, and “defines ‘employee’ broadly to cover anyone working for wages or other remuneration.”
“Importantly, the bill would generally ban audiovisual monitoring in an employee’s personal residence, vehicle, or property -- but would allow such monitoring when it is a legitimate part of the employee’s job duties,” the lawyer said. “This carveout is especially relevant to the personal care sector, which the bill exempts from several of its core restrictions.”
Companies with bring-your-own-device policies should take note that the proposed law would allow workers to lawfully decline employers’ requests to install tracking or data-collecting apps on their personal devices, added Binczyk.
An initially proposed private right of action didn’t make it into the final bill, so the Maine Department of Labor would enforce the possible law with $100-$500 fines per violation, he said.