DriveCam - Camera on Rearview MirrorIn the name of vehicle safety, California Assembly Bill 1942 will permit among other things “driver cams” to be mounted on vehicle windshields beginning on January 1, 2011. Formally known as “video event recorders,” these devices can continuously record audio, video, and G-force levels in a digital loop in order to help identify bad driver habits or other factors that lead to vehicle accidents. Well intended, the new law certainly will create a range of privacy issues for employers, particularly those in the transportation and delivery business.

Specifically, the law will permit the monitoring of driver performance through video event recorders so long as the following are satisfied:

  • Size limitation – The recorder must be mounted either (i) in a seven-inch square in the lower corner of the windshield farthest removed from the driver, (ii) in a five-inch square in the lower corner of the windshield nearest to the driver and outside of an airbag deployment zone, or (iii) in a five-inch square mounted to the center uppermost portion of the interior of the windshield.
  • Notice requirement – A notice must be posted in a visible location informing passengers that their conversations may be recorded.
  • Length of recording – No more than 30 seconds may be recorded before or after a triggering event, e.g., a collision.
  • Driver for hire rights – Employers that install a video event recorder in vehicles of their employees driving for hire must provide those employees with unedited copies of the recordings upon the request of the employee or the employee’s representative. These copies must be provided free of charge to the employee and within five (5) days of the request.

There are a number of obvious issues that face employers interested in utilizing video event recorders, such as not knowing what information will be captured by these devices and how to discipline employees who violate policy as shown in the recording. There are other less obvious issues which employers should consider when deciding to implement this technology.

For example, the law does not provide a period after which employees can no longer request a copy of the recording. This raises the question of how long recordings must be maintained. Another concern is whether information captured in a recording could be used against the employer, such as in a wage and hour class actions or violations of common carrier or vehicle safety requirements. Because the law is designed to address vehicle safety, a question exists as to whether the law implies a training requirement on employers aware of bad driving habits of employees from the recordings.

For these and other reasons, employers ought to think carefully before implementing this technology.

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Photo of Joseph J. Lazzarotti Joseph J. Lazzarotti

Joseph J. Lazzarotti is a principal in the Berkeley Heights, New Jersey, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He founded and currently co-leads the firm’s Privacy, Data and Cybersecurity practice group, edits the firm’s Privacy Blog, and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP)…

Joseph J. Lazzarotti is a principal in the Berkeley Heights, New Jersey, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. He founded and currently co-leads the firm’s Privacy, Data and Cybersecurity practice group, edits the firm’s Privacy Blog, and is a Certified Information Privacy Professional (CIPP) with the International Association of Privacy Professionals. Trained as an employee benefits lawyer, focused on compliance, Joe also is a member of the firm’s Employee Benefits practice group.

In short, his practice focuses on the matrix of laws governing the privacy, security, and management of data, as well as the impact and regulation of social media. He also counsels companies on compliance, fiduciary, taxation, and administrative matters with respect to employee benefit plans.

Privacy and cybersecurity experience – Joe counsels multinational, national and regional companies in all industries on the broad array of laws, regulations, best practices, and preventive safeguards. The following are examples of areas of focus in his practice:

  • Advising health care providers, business associates, and group health plan sponsors concerning HIPAA/HITECH compliance, including risk assessments, policies and procedures, incident response plan development, vendor assessment and management programs, and training.
  • Coached hundreds of companies through the investigation, remediation, notification, and overall response to data breaches of all kinds – PHI, PII, payment card, etc.
  • Helping organizations address questions about the application, implementation, and overall compliance with European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and, in particular, its implications in the U.S., together with preparing for the California Consumer Privacy Act.
  • Working with organizations to develop and implement video, audio, and data-driven monitoring and surveillance programs. For instance, in the transportation and related industries, Joe has worked with numerous clients on fleet management programs involving the use of telematics, dash-cams, event data recorders (EDR), and related technologies. He also has advised many clients in the use of biometrics including with regard to consent, data security, and retention issues under BIPA and other laws.
  • Assisting clients with growing state data security mandates to safeguard personal information, including steering clients through detailed risk assessments and converting those assessments into practical “best practice” risk management solutions, including written information security programs (WISPs). Related work includes compliance advice concerning FTC Act, Regulation S-P, GLBA, and New York Reg. 500.
  • Advising clients about best practices for electronic communications, including in social media, as well as when communicating under a “bring your own device” (BYOD) or “company owned personally enabled device” (COPE) environment.
  • Conducting various levels of privacy and data security training for executives and employees
  • Supports organizations through mergers, acquisitions, and reorganizations with regard to the handling of employee and customer data, and the safeguarding of that data during the transaction.
  • Representing organizations in matters involving inquiries into privacy and data security compliance before federal and state agencies including the HHS Office of Civil Rights, Federal Trade Commission, and various state Attorneys General.

Benefits counseling experience – Joe’s work in the benefits counseling area covers many areas of employee benefits law. Below are some examples of that work:

  • As part of the Firm’s Health Care Reform Team, he advises employers and plan sponsors regarding the establishment, administration and operation of fully insured and self-funded health and welfare plans to comply with ERISA, IRC, ACA/PPACA, HIPAA, COBRA, ADA, GINA, and other related laws.
  • Guiding clients through the selection of plan service providers, along with negotiating service agreements with vendors to address plan compliance and operations, while leveraging data security experience to ensure plan data is safeguarded.
  • Counsels plan sponsors on day-to-day compliance and administrative issues affecting plans.
  • Assists in the design and drafting of benefit plan documents, including severance and fringe benefit plans.
  • Advises plan sponsors concerning employee benefit plan operation, administration and correcting errors in operation.

Joe speaks and writes regularly on current employee benefits and data privacy and cybersecurity topics and his work has been published in leading business and legal journals and media outlets, such as The Washington Post, Inside Counsel, Bloomberg, The National Law Journal, Financial Times, Business Insurance, HR Magazine and NPR, as well as the ABA Journal, The American Lawyer, Law360, Bender’s Labor and Employment Bulletin, the Australian Privacy Law Bulletin and the Privacy, and Data Security Law Journal.

Joe served as a judicial law clerk for the Honorable Laura Denvir Stith on the Missouri Court of Appeals.