ARTICLE · 29 OCTOBER 2019

Are Fingerprints Employee Records? Biometric Data In The Workplace

Johnson Winter & Slattery

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In an age driven by technology, employers are increasingly using biometric technologies, such as fingerprint scanning and facial recognition, as a way to deal with employee identification, absenteeism, and workplace surveillance.

AustraliaEmployment and HR

Yoness Blackmore

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In an age driven by technology, employers are increasingly using biometric technologies, such as fingerprint scanning and facial recognition, as a way to deal with employee identification, absenteeism, and workplace surveillance.

A decision of the Fair Work Commission in Jeremy Lee v Superior Wood Pty Ltd [2019] FWCFB 2946 provides valuable insight for employers about directing employees to provide their biometric information. Importantly it also considers the extent to which an employer must comply with obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles when collecting that biometric information.

Key takeaways

Introducing biometric systems (such as fingerprint scanning) into the workplace is not straightforward and it is important that an employer:

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