European Union: Mixing Business With Pleasure – Subsequent Dismissal Not A Breach Of Human Rights

Summary

The applicant ("A") brought proceedings against his employer in the European Court of Human Rights ("ECtHR") after being dismissed for sending personal messages during working hours using the employer's computer. The ECtHR found that there was no breach of A's human rights and dismissed the complaint.

Facts

A was responsible for replying to clients' enquiries at work. A's employer had asked him to set up a Yahoo account specifically for this purpose. The employer had strict internal regulations which prohibited the use of company computers and other resources for personal reasons ("the Prohibition"). Upon monitoring A's Yahoo Messenger communications over the course of a week, his employer discovered that A may have used the account for private purposes, in violation of the Prohibition. When the employer communicated its concerns to A, A denied it and claimed that all of his messages were of a professional nature. A's employer then presented A with a document showing transcripts of all messages A had sent over the course of that week which included personal messages to his fiancée and brother. A's contract was terminated as a result. A brought proceedings to challenge the dismissal in the Romanian courts and subsequently in the ECtHR.

Held

The ECtHR held that, among other things, there had been no breach of A's right to a private life.  While recognising that A's claim is admissible in principle, the case was dismissed on the basis of the merits. A's employer had accessed the emails on the assumption that they were all professional in nature, following A's denial that he had made private use of the employer's IT systems. Furthermore, the employer’s use of the communications had been limited before domestic courts as the content had been largely immaterial and identities of the individuals with whom A had communicated had not been disclosed. The only purpose of the transcripts was to prove a disciplinary breach by A and to otherwise enforce the Prohibition. Similarly, A's employer had not accessed any other documents on A's computer.  Finally, A did not provide a convincing reason as to why he had used the Yahoo account for personal reasons.

CASE OF BĂRBULESCU V ROMANIA (APPLICATION NO. 61496/08)

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