Can an employer use hidden surveillance cameras against employees?
There is no legislation specifically prohibiting this but there would have to be fairly substantial grounds for the employer to cite should these cameras form the basis of an unfair dismissal claim on the grounds of breach of mutual trust and confidence. The employment relationship depends on each party having a level of trust in one another and I can’t see how this practice could possibly be justified – cases you might want to look at in relation to this principle include Bell v Lever Brothers, Johnstone v Bloomsbury HA and Malik v BCCI; none of them are related to surveillance but they do discuss the trust and confidence principle at length.
