Workplace Privacy in Oregon

By Susan G. Hauser | Reviewed by Canaan Suitt, J.D. | Last updated on June 24, 2025 Featuring practical insights from contributing attorneys Chrys A. Martin, Paula A. Barran, Scott N. Hunt and Courtney Angeli

The right to privacy is a venerable and hallowed concept. But if people think it extends to workplace communications performed on company-owned devices, “they’ve got their heads buried in the sand,” says Oregon employment and labor lawyer Chrys A. Martin.

“Every employee knows now that somebody can listen to their voice mail or tap into their email or sites they’ve been accessing,” she says. That is, every employee who’s read their employee handbook and company policies.

Read Your Employer’s Technology Policies

“Most employers’ policies say some key things,” says Paula A. Barran, founding partner of Barran Liebman, a labor and employment law firm in Portland. “‘This is ours, not yours; this isn’t private to you; if we want to, we can look at it; and if we want to, we can use anything that’s on it.’”

Once information is put on the company’s electronic systems, she adds, “Employees no longer have any privacy right to it, and the company is entitled to review it, print it, download it, and use it.”

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Why Employers Monitor Employee Activity

Some of the monitoring can be chalked up to self-preservation. Consider that a company’s entire computer network could be brought down by a virus thanks to one employee’s careless web surfing. Another kind of corporate damage could result from indiscreet revelations of trade secrets and confidential information.

Martin says most protections and monitoring of employee email and voice mail is by Oregon employers striving to keep secrets and nondisclosure within the walls of their research and development departments. Barran’s advice to employees: “If you want personal privacy, that’s why God created iPads.”

Every employee knows now that somebody can listen to their voice mail or tap into their email or sites they’ve been accessing.

— Chrys A. Martin

The Risks of Texting on Company Time

But even when equipped with an iPad or a personal phone, employees can’t completely dodge scrutiny. Sure, using personal devices prohibits an employee’s boss from examining messages produced on them; but doing it on company time might land workers in hot water.

“If it’s your own phone, and there is no stated written policy that they’ll access it, looking at that phone and examining the text is probably an invasion of privacy without the employee’s consent,” says Scott N. Hunt, a partner at employment firm Busse & Hunt in Portland. “But if you’re doing it at work and not for employment purposes, they don’t have to look at the text to get rid of you. They could just tell you, ‘Well, you shouldn’t be texting on company time. You’re out of here.’”

Most employers’ policies say some key things: ‘This is ours, not yours; this isn’t private to you; if we want to, we can look at it; and if we want to, we can use anything that’s on it.’

Paula A. Barran

New Technologies and Employee Privacy Rights

With rapidly developing technology, it’s understandable that employee rights and privacy laws haven’t really caught up with employment practice rules.

“I’ve been doing appropriate workplace conduct training sessions for close to 20 years,” says Courtney Angeli, a Portland-based employment lawyer with Buchanan Angeli Altschul & Sullivan. “Even several years ago, there was very little talk of legal issues and things like social media, and the concerns about non-workplace conduct mostly involved holiday parties. Now we spend an enormous amount of time talking about the impact [of social media].”

If you’re [on your phone] at work and not for employment purposes, [your employer doesn’t] have to look at the texts to get rid of you. They could just tell you, ‘Well, you shouldn’t be texting on company time. You’re out of here.’

Scott N. Hunt

Personal Passwords Are Protected Under Oregon Law

Thanks to a new law, employers can no longer demand personal social media passwords from employees, job applicants, or prospective employees.

Martin notes that there is really just one area in the workplace where an employee can truly relax and not expect to be monitored: the restroom. “That’s where you’d have an expectation of privacy,” she says. “But nowhere else on the employer’s premises.”

Even several years ago, there was very little talk of legal issues and things like social media… Now we spend an enormous amount of time talking about the impact [of social media].

Courtney Angeli

Find an Experienced Employment Law Attorney

If you have concerns about your privacy rights and your employer’s practices, visit the Super Lawyers directory to find an experienced employment law attorney for legal advice. For more information about this area, see our labor law overview.

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