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Breech of Confidentiality

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denisemcorey

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Vermont

An employee has some concerns regarding the Principal of the school and the Chair of the school board. After failed attempts to get answers to his concerns he requests a meeting with the Superintendent of the school. The meeting takes between the employee and the Superintendent in an office within the school and the door is closed by the employee for privacy. Would this be considered a confidential meeting? Two weeks later the employee receives a letter from the Superintendent to confirm the conversation that had taken place between them. The problem is that the letter was carbon copied to the Principal and the Chair. The employee feels this violated a private meeting between the employee and the Superintendent. Is this a breech of confidentiality?

There have been other incidences that have taken placed where an employee was accused and later fired for supposedly breeching confidentiality. The Principal asked the employee in her office with the door closed for her opinion regarding a concern the Principal had on a former employee. The Principal was told she had nothing to be concerned about. At a later school board meeting the former employee confronted the Principal about the concern and the Principal denied it. Days later the employee was asked if she was the one that told the former employee about the concern. The employee replied "No, I did not." The employee was written up and several months later was fired for supposedly breeching confidentiality. It was later learned that the Principal was overheard by yet another employee. But it didn’t matter to anyone that the truth had been told when the employee was originally asked about telling the former employee of the Principals concern. If the door is closed does that make it a confidential meeting?
 


BelizeBreeze

Senior Member
denisemcorey said:
What is the name of your state? Vermont

An employee has some concerns regarding the Principal of the school and the Chair of the school board. After failed attempts to get answers to his concerns he requests a meeting with the Superintendent of the school. The meeting takes between the employee and the Superintendent in an office within the school and the door is closed by the employee for privacy. Would this be considered a confidential meeting?
For the basis of your state's sunshine laws no.
Two weeks later the employee receives a letter from the Superintendent to confirm the conversation that had taken place between them. The problem is that the letter was carbon copied to the Principal and the Chair. The employee feels this violated a private meeting between the employee and the Superintendent. Is this a breech of confidentiality?
Based on the facts in your post, no.
There have been other incidences that have taken placed where an employee was accused and later fired for supposedly breeching confidentiality. The Principal asked the employee in her office with the door closed for her opinion regarding a concern the Principal had on a former employee. The Principal was told she had nothing to be concerned about. At a later school board meeting the former employee confronted the Principal about the concern and the Principal denied it. Days later the employee was asked if she was the one that told the former employee about the concern. The employee replied "No, I did not." The employee was written up and several months later was fired for supposedly breeching confidentiality. It was later learned that the Principal was overheard by yet another employee. But it didn’t matter to anyone that the truth had been told when the employee was originally asked about telling the former employee of the Principals concern. If the door is closed does that make it a confidential meeting?
No.
 

cbg

I'm a Northern Girl
It might help for you to understand that with VERY few exceptions, what is considered confidential (and thus what is considered a breach of confidentiality) is determined by company policy, not by law.
 

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