Legal Question in Employment Law in Washington
Internet ''surfing pornography''
If a company does have an explicit e-mail and computer usage policy, can an employer make any differentiation between personal use of the internet being used to view Disney, or an airline web address or any type of pornography web site? Can an employer discipline one employee who has visited a pornographic web, and not discipline another employee who uses the Internet for personal use, but visit sites such as an airline or Disney?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Internet ''surfing pornography''
There is very little protection for employees in this area. So long as the differentiation between porno and disney is not just a cover up for something illegal (e.g., discrimination, retaliation, "whistleblower" retaliation, etc.), there's certainly a rational basis for the company to treat it differently, e.g., they might get sued for sexual harassment by someone who ends up having to see this stuff. Also, it tends to be exciting stuff, and it can be hard for employees to turn that back off, then they start treating each other like the workplace is sexualized, and that's a problem.
It's really hard to fully answer questions in this forum. There could be important information I don't know that could change this answer. You should make a few calls to lawyers in your area to run it by them and see what they think. Don't act on this information in your own situation without doing that first. You can call me if you want.
Steve Teller
(206) 324-8969
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