A Chetu, a Florida firm founded in the Netherlands, has filed a court complaint against their employer for unfair dismissal on the subject of remote work webcam surveillance.
While attending a training program, a worker was asked to provide screen sharing and webcam access for an entire day, but after refusing to do so, the employee was sacked. This may have been above board in Florida where workers or companies are not required to issue a notice or reason for resigning a contract, however employment laws across the world offer different levels of protection.
According to public court documents obtained by the Court of Zeeland West-Brabant, the worker explained to the company:
I''m not comfortable being monitored for nine hours a day by a camera. This is an invasion of my privacy and makes me feel really uncomfortable. The reason why my camera isn''t on. You may already monitor all things on my laptop and I am sharing my screen.
Monitoring staff via webcam
Chetu notifyd the worker of their contracts'' termination by email, citing a lack of willingness to work or insubordination.
Chetu paid the claimant $2,600 in unpaid salary, $9,245 in worker transition assistance, and a further $8,150 on the basis of a wrongful contract termination. The penalties spanned to the equivalent of 23 days holiday pay, an 8% holiday allowance, and any court and late payment charges, bringing the total total to around $50,000.
In the Netherlands, the court declared that camera surveillance during nine hours a day is unavoidable and prohibits him from working. Moreover, he was already tested for output via software installed on his laptop. It continues: There was no question of refusing to work.
As a result of the fact that Chetu did not attend the hearing, the court notes that companies'' lack of statements or defense against this case.
Chetu''s Dutch subsidiary has been dissolved since September 1, 2022, and has deregistered from the country''s trade register.