BYOD – Labour Law Aspects

BYOD brings a lot of advantages for both employers and employees. However, there are several labour law issues that need to be considered before implementing this new trend.

BYOD is happening whether employers like it or not

More and more employees use privately-owned devices for work purposes. This so-called "Bring Your Own Device", "BYOD" or "Consumerization" is - from an employer's perspective – aimed primarily at increasing productivity, mobility and employee's motivation. However, BYOD comes along with a host of security and legal issues, especially as no specific statutory provisions exist in this regard.

Key labour law issues

Loss of control / Employee's privacy

The main issue for employers implementing BYOD is a loss of control. Employers are responsible for corporate data, even if it is stored on employee-owned devices. But how can employers bindingly instruct employees on how to use their privately-owned devices in order to secure business data?