Due to the ongoing corona pandemic, companies are increasingly switching to digital communication channels such as Slack and Microsoft Teams. Instead of meeting face-to-face in meetings or having a coffee break with colleagues, meetings are now more and more being held virtually and conversations between colleagues are conducted via Slack or Teams chat. In addition to professional things, there can also be private topics – but can the boss actually follow and read chats on Microsoft Teams, Slack and Co.?
Can the boss read messages in real time?
It is not possible for the boss to read messages in real time and it is also not legally permissible, reports msn. Nevertheless, the employer has the option of accessing the chat content at a later point in time, both with Slack and with Microsoft Teams. The legal circumstances under which this is possible are explained in more detail below.
Slack rules: You can and can’t
How easy it is for an employer to get private messages on Slack depends entirely on the version the company is using. With the free version, the boss can export the corresponding chats with a valid reason, provided this is legally permissible. However, if a company uses a paid Slack product, the Plus Plan, according to futurezone, the boss can export corresponding chat histories using a self-service tool. As the Handelsblatt reports, the employee cannot see whether the boss is exporting a specific chat or not.
Microsoft offers similar features
If a company uses Microsoft Teams, the boss has similar opportunities to view the chats. All private chats and meeting channels in Teams can be searched and read using the eDiscovery tool. However, there must also be a legal fact here that allows this invasion of privacy, for example a criminal offence.
That is the legal position
Lisa Kulmer, lawyer at DORDA Rechtsanwälte GmbH, explained to Future-Zone in this regard: “Continuous reading or even permanent monitoring of messages is not permitted under both labor and data protection law”. Reading, searching and exporting a private conversation on Slack and Teams is only permitted if the employee has violated compliance regulations or committed a criminal offense. According to DORDA Rechtsanwälte GmbH, private matters or gossip about the boss can still be classified as private communication, provided that it is not considered bullying or is damaging to the company.
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