The Law of Employee Data: Privacy, Property, Governance

Authors

Matthew T. Bodie, Saint Louis UniversityFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Spring 2022

Publication Citation

97 Indiana Law Journal 707 (2022)

Abstract

The availability of data related to the employment relationship has ballooned into an unruly mass of performance metrics, personal characteristics, biometric recordings, and creative output. The law governing this collection of information has been awkwardly split between privacy regulations and intellectual property rights, with employees generally losing on both ends. This Article rejects a binary approach that either carves out private spaces ineffectually or renders data into isolated pieces of ownership. Instead, the law should implement a hybrid system that provides workers with continuing input and control without blocking efforts at joint production. In addition, employers should have fiduciary responsibilities in managing employee data, and workers should have collective governance rights over the data’s collection and use.

Recommended Citation

Bodie, Matthew T. (2022) "The Law of Employee Data: Privacy, Property, Governance," Indiana Law Journal: Vol. 97: Iss. 2, Article 7.
Available at: https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ilj/vol97/iss2/7