Information contained in this publication is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or opinion, nor is it a substitute for the professional judgment of an attorney.
Legislation to restrict employers' access to applicants' and employees' personal online content continues its rapid expansion in 2014. Three weeks after Wisconsin became the 13th state to adopt its own social media password protection law, on April 29, 2014, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam signed his own state's password protection law. This new law goes into effect on January 1, 2015.
The Tennessee law, known as the Employee Online Privacy Act of 2014 (S.B. 1808), has many of the same prohibitions and exceptions found in similar state laws. There are, however, some key differences that render Tennessee's new law broader in certain aspects, while narrower in others. Employers with operations in Tennessee should understand the new law's basic requirements as well as its differences from similar laws, as described in more detail below. Because the new law applies to employers with one or more employees, even the smallest Tennessee employers must comply with these new restrictions. Continue reading this article here.