The boundaries between real life and our digital selves are becoming increasingly blurred. With this erasure of these borders comes reputational and safety risks, especially for globetrotting high-net-worths who put their wealth, wellbeing and family in the hands of trusted staff.
Private staff are likely to have access to personal information about the employer and their family, friends and acquaintances and while there may be no malice, domestic staff may (inadvertently or deliberately) post sensitive information, such as images from inside a home or personal family details, on social media. For families, particularly high-profile or high-net-worth individuals, this can lead to significant privacy and security concerns.
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For the wealthy, maintaining household privacy, particularly in homes employing domestic staff, requires clear legal and practical boundaries.
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Employment experts explain how HNW families can legally protect themselves against any inadvertent or deliberate privacy breaches.
Confidentiality clauses in employment contracts
The most important step is to establish strong legal foundations through employment contracts, Joe Beeston, employment partner at Forsters tells Spear’s.
‘It’s vitally important to have clear confidentiality terms in your contracts of employment making it clear that all personal information (like that relating to finances, relationships, health and family) should be considered confidential and that staff must not share this information, including on social media sites,’ he said.
Such clauses should also clearly outline the consequences of a breach, including dismissal or the possibility of seeking legal action, Beeston explains.
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Jane Amphlett, head of employment at Howard Kennedy, tells Spear’s that express confidentiality provisions protect confidential information, both during employment and after.
‘They should be included in employment contracts or in separate confidentiality agreements. These need to be tailored and cover all relevant aspects of the employer’s personal, family and professional life, including information about their finances, relationships, household and/or their lifestyle,’ she says.
She adds: ‘However, they should also make it clear that the obligations do not prevent the employee from making disclosures in specified circumstances, for example protected whistleblowing disclosures and reporting any suspected criminal offence to the police or any law enforcement agency, which reflect the relevant legal and regulatory framework which were put in place to address concerns about the misuse of confidentiality restrictions or non-disclosure agreements.’
Non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) offer another legal layer but essentially mirror the confidentiality clauses found in standard contracts.
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Amphlett also advises that employers include a requirement to return all the employer’s property, including any confidential information, and to delete any of the employer’s information stored on any computer, magnetic or optical disk or memory which they have access to on request and in any event on termination of employment.
‘When any employee is departing, the employer should consider reiterating these provisions and the confidentiality provisions (or possibly introducing some, under advice) in any departure arrangements agreed, which are usually set out in a Settlement Agreement,’ she said.
Practical communication and expectations
Practical measures and open communication are equally crucial, Beeston suggests.
Beeston suggests talking to staff about what you would expect from them in terms of confidentiality, for example, making it clear you do not want them sharing photos from inside the home.
‘Wherever possible mark documents as “private and confidential” so that it’s clear,’ he adds, a recommendation echoed by Amphlett who also suggests locking documents away securely and limiting access to sensitive or confidential information.
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Many breaches of privacy occur simply due to lack of awareness. Families are encouraged to provide clear guidelines, and potentially training, on social media use to domestic staff.
‘Explaining to staff why you are adopting the approach you are is best – for example, you could explain that taking what might seem like an innocent photo from within the living room of your home could: inadvertently capture details from a bank statement left on a table; or pose a security risk if viewed by someone looking to burgle a home,’ Beeston says.
Employees should also be made aware of the risk of revealing the family’s location on social media, Amphlett notes.
Legal remedies for privacy breaches
If a breach occurs while the employee is still in service, the employer can pursue disciplinary action, which may include termination, Beeston says.
In severe cases, especially involving sensitive or confidential material, ‘it might be possible to get a court order that the material be removed or deleted’, he says.
Families are also advised to act quickly by reporting any offending content to the relevant platform to have it taken down.
Tech and data protection
Subject to data protection and privacy laws, employers can also monitor staff conduct and usage of any IT or other equipment that they are given, Amphlett says.
‘The employer’s interests must be balanced with workers’ rights and freedoms under data protection laws and the right to respect for a private and family life (under the Human Rights Act 1998). Although it may seem onerous when hiring a small number of employees, before monitoring staff, employers should carry out a data protection impact assessment and put in place relevant policies,’ she says.
There are even greater complexities and risks if the employee uses their own devices for work.
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‘Employers should give serious consideration to whether, how, and to what extent, they will be permitted to have access to and monitor their information, which is contained on the employee’s personal devices alongside the employee’s personal data, as employees have a reasonable expectation of privacy. Steps should be taken to ensure that work-related and personal data are segregated, and access to the employee’s personal data is minimised.’
