Effective May 7, 2022, all New York employers will be required to provide notice to employees of any employer monitoring of work phones, emails, or Internet use. This new law amends the New York Civil Rights Law (a law different than New York’s anti-discrimination law) and, according to the legislature, is designed to “increase transparency within the organization,” “avoid lawsuits and litigation regarding invasion of privacy,” and “permit employees to make informed decisions about their Internet use with full knowledge of the ramifications of their actions, while supporting companies’ ability to monitor Internet activity within their organization.”

Notice must be provided in written form to all new hires who are subject to electronic monitoring, and employers must obtain a written acknowledgement from each new employee who is provided such notice. This written notice and acknowledgement can also be in electronic form. The law does not require that current employees receive such written notice and provide an acknowledgment of receipt, but employers are required to post notice of electronic monitoring covered under this law in a conspicuous place, which is readily available for viewing by employees subject to electronic monitoring. The Attorney General, who is tasked with enforcing this law, has not released any template notices that employers can use. Absent the release of any such documents—which we will be monitoring ahead of the May 7, 2022 effective date—employers...

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