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HR Insights: When Can a Company Search Personal Belongings of Employees?

When can a company search personal belongings of employees?

desk beside someone peeking through blinds

Scenario:

I brought a gym bag to work for the first time, planning to hit the gym right after. While I was out for lunch, I came back to find my manager going through it. They said they were checking for a “potential security risk,” but it just felt like an invasion of privacy. They went through my personal belongings, but the manger claims it’s within the company’s right, since I brought it onto work property.


When can a company search personal belongings of employees?


Answer:

As long as there is a clear workplace policy put into place stating you have a limited expectation of privacy when it comes to workplace property or personal property you bring into the workplace, a private employer can conduct a search for legitimate business purposes or reasonable suspicion of possessing fire arms, illegal drugs, or criminal activity.


More Details:

There’s a lot of moving parts that determines what rights an employer has when it comes to searching an employee’s property.


Public Employees

Public employees are protected under the Fourth Amendment against unreasonable search and seizures, so if the employer did not have reasonable suspicion that something illegal was contained in the bag, it would be an unlawful search.


Private Employees

For private employees, the answer is a lot more dependent on various factors. Generally, private employers can search an employee’s purse or bag, as well as their desk or locker. However, if the employer doesn't have a workplace policy in place that says the employee should have a limited expectation of privacy in the workplace, the employer could be at risk for an unlawful search.


Rules for Employers

Employers should only be conducting searches for legitimate work-related reasons or due to reasonable suspicion of firearms or criminal activity. For example, a legitimate work-related reason for a search could be that a theft occurred in the workplace, and the employer is searching for the stolen object. Legitimate reasonable suspicion would be if the employer has reason to suspect the employee may be carrying a firearm.


State by State

However, this might change depending on what state you are employed in. For example, while some workplace search policies may include employee vehicles as something an employer might search, this is unlawful in the state of Washington. Washington employers have limited reasons why they can search an employee’s vehicle, and generally it has to be a situation where any reasonable person would believe access is necessary to prevent an immediate threat, or an otherwise lawful search by a law enforcement officer.

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