Recording conversations at work

[AnotherDavid]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas

I am aware of Texas law allowing a conversation to be recorded if one party consents (http://www.rcfp.org/can-we-tape/texas) so from that I ask:

1. If an employee asks "Is it ok to record this conversation?" can the answer be "no" and then the conversation cannot be recorded?
2. Can it be company policy to not record certain conversations (e.g. Performance Review) or any conversation?
3. If the employee does record it, if I (as the manager) demand a copy of the recording? ("demand" as stating that if I request a copy it is compulsory for the employee to provide a copy)

I ask because this particular employee has had disciplinary issues in the past (some of it could be considered subordination).

Thank you for your time.

 

[Ohiogal]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas

I am aware of Texas law allowing a conversation to be recorded if one party consents (http://www.rcfp.org/can-we-tape/texas) so from that I ask:

1. If an employee asks "Is it ok to record this conversation?" can the answer be "no" and then the conversation cannot be recorded?
2. Can it be company policy to not record certain conversations (e.g. Performance Review) or any conversation?
3. If the employee does record it, if I (as the manager) demand a copy of the recording? ("demand" as stating that if I request a copy it is compulsory for the employee to provide a copy)

I ask because this particular employee has had disciplinary issues in the past (some of it could be considered subordination).

Thank you for your time.

How many people are involved in these conversations? Is it just you and the employee? Why wouldn't you want the conversation recorded? You can ask for a copy but the employee doesn't have to provide it. It can be company policy that no conversations are recorded.

 

[swalsh411]

The law doesn't address your question. All it says is that one party must consent. Any of the following would be legal:

-Firing you because you asked the conversation to not be recorded
-Firing you because you asked for a copy of the recording
-Firing you for making your own recording
-Firing you because you told other employees you didn't like being recorded
-Firing you because you complained the company wouldn't give you a copy

And no, they do not have to provide you a copy.

 

[AnotherDavid]

How many people are involved in these conversations? Is it just you and the employee?

Just myself and the employee.

Why wouldn't you want the conversation recorded?

I am asking so that I understand alternate viewpoints on this matter.

You can ask for a copy but the employee doesn't have to provide it. It can be company policy that no conversations are recorded.

Thank you. This is a point I was wondering about specifically.

 

[AnotherDavid]

The law doesn't address your question. All it says is that one party must consent.

This is why I posed the question to begin with. I realized the law was vague; thus offering some amount of interpretation.

Any of the following would be legal:

-Firing you because you asked the conversation to not be recorded
-Firing you because you asked for a copy of the recording
-Firing you for making your own recording
-Firing you because you told other employees you didn't like being recorded
-Firing you because you complained the company wouldn't give you a copy

I found other posts online that stated similar. I couldn't find if it had to be stated in official terms that a conversation not be recorded. The nature of some of our conversations might be sensitive, which is where some of my inquiries came from.

And no, they do not have to provide you a copy.

I was ::almost:: certain of this. Thank you for some verification here.

 

[A#1Headache]

from a different view

Why not record a conversation and issue all parties a copy.

If the manager is professional and on task about the needs of and requirements from the employee. The conversation will be a help to the parties involved and avoid x,y, and was said and or not said.

If their is a problem to what the manager and or employee did or did not say the recording will clarify the issue.
Remember recordings can be a life saver when their is a misunderstanding of an issue.

Management should by now understand that any contact with an employee is probably being recorded and actions considered as: misconduct, verbal harassmsnt, excessive profanity, unwanted sexual advances, unwanted sexual jokes or stories, are being recorded by the employeewith or without employer permission.

Headache Warning to Management:

If you have been or think you have been excessivly harassive to an employee or group of employees you are being recorded and expect to see such recordings to be used by the employee's lawyer and EEOC.

Weather you can fire or discipline an employee for unauthorized recordings the recording is the property of the employee and erasure or attempted erasure can open you up to theft charges and distruction of evidence charges if the employee recorded you asking the employee to violate a law or regulation and you threaten the employee then expect to have possable witness intimidation charges possably tacked on.

Needless to say if you are: a professional at work and a respectable manager then any recording authorized or unauthorized may be a witness to your excellent behavior and possably fodder for advancement, unfair and unprofessional, you are going to be recorded and your offensive behavior will be made public to the regreat of the company.

Please do not believe me just talk to a state or federal labor investigator and ask if recording of the boss is a rare and unusual incident.

Headache Warning to Employees:

Your boss has a reasonable expectation for you to: report to work on time, not be a headache to the boss or other employees, not to tell off color jokes or stories, do your work in a reasonable amount of time alloted, perform in a professional manor.

You are to know that you are not the center of the universe and any troubles you have are probably common to all people so do not gripe about the small stuff and if a person or issue is affecting your duties your boss is to be informed and allow the boss some room to do what needs to be done.

In essence act like a professional employee. If you are a constant headache to the boss, company, or fellow employees be expect to be recorded at any time and be ready to be fired and the company having recordings of you being a unprofessional worker who had to be fired so the company could return to a professional level. And if you were a unprofessional employee then do not expect state or federal labor investigaters to take your clames. And do not expect the unemployment office to take your claims.

 

[quincy]

A#1 Headache, you often post pretty good advice and some interesting information that can be worth considering, but you ALSO often seem to post it several months or years too late to do the original poster any good.

Do you think you could look at the posting dates of the threads before responding? Necroposting is sort of frowned on here.

 

[A#1Headache]

some other things

Quinc are you a retired m.e. some poor devil may need this info from the replies in this thread. If the Admin did not want replies then shut down then the admin should shut down the reply option . Also when dealing with labor investigators the term a few months is an issue .

 

[ecmst12]

It would be a huge headache to close every thread when the conversation is done. There is ONE moderator on this board. Plus, it is acceptable for the original poster of a thread to come back and update or ask additional questions on the situation. We are asking you to be polite and observe the rules of this forum which is to NOT post on old threads. If you choose to ignore the rules, people are going to start reporting your posts, plus it's just rude.

 

[commentator]

Besides that, the information provided is not that helpful, and contributes GREATLY to the misconception that the employee is going to have more rights on the job than not. That if you catch your employer on tape being less than positive in his communication with you, you are going to have some rights in the matter and he should be very afraid of you.

If you decided to record every word that the employer says to you, and they in any way find out about it, they can fire you so fast it will make your head spin, especially in employer friendly places like Texas where this employer is apparently trying to record instances of the employee being "subordinate" so he will, I imagine, be able to justify firing him to the unemployment insurance system.

 

[quincy]

Quinc are you a retired m.e.

Okay, I am probably going to regret asking this, A#1Headache (and I am pretty much regretting it already), but, uh, what exactly is an "m.e?"

I am not retired, so the answer to your question is going to be "no" regardless, but curiosity is getting the better of me.

 

[cbg]

I'm dating myself by knowing the answer to this.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quincy,_M.E.

 

[quincy]

Ahhh!

I was going through all the "m.e." possibilities I could think of, and I suspected Headache didn't mean myalgic encephalomyelitis, or Maine, or "mechanical and engineering," or the internet country code for Monten egro (although with A#1 you can never be real sure ). But I totally forgot about Quincy the medical examiner.

Thank you, cbg! My answer of "no" is a good one, then, and my curiosity is sated.

 

[cbg]

I imagine Headache thought he was being very clever, rather than eponymous.

 

[A#1Headache]

Senior Member

it has been said that posting at a late date seems to be in essence unfashinable by some Senior Member. This is interesting because it appears that Senior Members are posting on a older thread. Please, hipocrisy is ugly and as a victim of hipcrisy I am laughing as I read the posts of some Senior Member or Senior Members. My intent was to help a person who might need help with advice that they could need now or in the future or another person who might google with a simular problem and need advice. I intent was to help what is your intent.