Summary
# STOP SPYING BOSSES ACT (S. 262)
## WHAT THIS BILL DOES
This bill controls how employers monitor workers and collect their data. The bill requires employers to tell workers about workplace surveillance and bans certain types of surveillance and data collection practices.
## WHO IT AFFECTS
* Employers with 11 or more workers
* All workers at those employers, including job applicants
* Federal government agencies and their employees
* Congressional staff and employees
* State and tribal government employees
* Companies that help employers with surveillance
* State attorneys general and privacy regulators who enforce the law
## KEY PROVISIONS
* Employers must tell workers what data they collect, how they collect it, where it goes, and why they use it. Workers must get this information within 30 to 60 days of being hired or sooner, and employers must update workers within 7 days when anything changes (Sec. 3)
* Employers cannot use surveillance to find out which workers want to join a union, monitor union activity, or identify workers who report illegal conduct (Sec. 4)
* Employers cannot use surveillance to monitor workers during off-duty hours or in private areas like bathrooms or prayer rooms (Sec. 4)
* Employers cannot sell or share worker surveillance data with third parties unless they tell the worker first and the worker agrees to it (Sec. 4)
* Workers can ask for and see all data their employer collected on them through surveillance within 7 days, and they can correct wrong or incomplete information (Sec. 3)
* Workers can sue employers in federal court for violations and recover money damages, attorney's fees, and other relief (Sec. 8)
* Employers cannot punish workers for reporting surveillance violations or asking for their data rights (Sec. 7)
## WHAT CHANGES
The bill creates a new Privacy and Technology Division inside the Labor Department to make rules about worker surveillance, investigate complaints, and enforce the law.
Employers must publish surveillance practices in a way that any worker can freely access and read.
Workers gain the right to know what surveillance is happening and to access their own data.
Employers cannot use surveillance technology to predict worker behavior that is unrelated to their job.
Employers cannot collect data on workers' health status, disability, political beliefs, religious views, or immigration status unless the job requires it.
Workers can file lawsuits directly in federal court without going through arbitration (binding dispute resolution) or class action bans.
## IMPORTANT DEFINITIONS
* Workplace surveillance: Any employer monitoring of workers on or off duty, including collection and use of worker data through devices like cameras, phones, GPS tracking, or wearable devices (Sec. 2)
* Data: Any information that identifies or relates to a worker, including names, government ID numbers, financial information, emails, texts, location information, photos, work productivity information, device usage, personality test results, or online activity (Sec. 2)
* Automated decision system: Any software or technology using computers to make or help make decisions, predictions, or scores about workers, including artificial intelligence and machine learning tools (Sec. 2)
* Biometric information: Information from technology that reads unique body features like fingerprints, voice prints, iris scans, facial recognition, hand geometry, or gait (Sec. 2)
* Service provider: A company hired by an employer to collect or handle worker data only for that employer under a written contract (Sec. 2)
* Third party: Any person or company that is not the employer or a service provider and that receives worker data from the employer (Sec. 2)
## EFFECTIVE DATE
The disclosure and prohibition sections take effect 60 days after the bill becomes law (Sec. 3(f) and Sec. 4(f))
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 262
To prohibit, or require disclosure of, the surveillance, monitoring, and
collection of certain worker data by employers, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
FEBRUARY 2, 2023
Mr. CASEY (for himself, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. SCHATZ, Mr. FETTERMAN, and Ms.
WARREN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred
to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
A BILL
To prohibit, or require disclosure of, the surveillance, moni-
toring, and collection of certain worker data by employ-
ers, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Spying Bosses
4
Act’’.
5
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
6
For purposes of this Act:
7
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•S 262 IS
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-
1
trator’’ means the Administrator of the Privacy and
2
Technology Division established under section 5.
3
(2) AGGREGATED
DATA.—The term ‘‘aggre-
4
gated data’’ means data with respect to covered indi-
5
viduals of an employer that the employer has com-
6
bined or collected together in a summary or other
7
form that prevents the identification of any specific
8
individual.
9
(3) APPLICANT.—The term ‘‘applicant’’, with
10
respect to an employer, means an individual who ap-
11
plies, or applied, to be employed by, or otherwise
12
perform work for remuneration for, the employer.
13
(4) AUTOMATED DECISION SYSTEM.—
14
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘automated
15
decision system’’ means a system, software, or
16
process that—
17
(i) uses computation, in whole or in
18
part, to determine outcomes, make or aid
19
decisions (including through evaluations,
20
metrics, or scoring), inform policy imple-
21
mentation, collect data or observations, or
22
otherwise interact with individuals or com-
23
munities, including such a system, soft-
24
ware, or process derived from machine
25
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•S 262 IS
learning, statistics, or other data proc-
1
essing or artificial intelligence techniques;
2
and
3
(ii) is not passive computing infra-
4
structure.
5
(B) PASSIVE
COMPUTING
INFRASTRUC-
6
TURE.—For purposes of this paragraph, the
7
term ‘‘passive computing infrastructure’’ means
8
any intermediary technology that does not influ-
9
ence or determine the outcome of a decision,
10
make or aid in a decision (including through
11
evaluations, metrics, or scoring), inform policy
12
implementation, or collect data or observations,
13
including web hosting, domain registration, net-
14
working, caching, data storage, or cybersecu-
15
rity.
16
(5) AUTOMATED DECISION SYSTEM OUTPUT.—
17
The term ‘‘automated decision system output’’
18
means any information, assumptions, predictions,
19
scoring, recommendations, decisions, evaluations,
20
metrics, or conclusions generated by an automated
21
decision system.
22
(6) BIOMETRIC INFORMATION.—
23
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘biometric
24
information’’ means any information generated
25
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•S 262 IS
from the technological processing of an individ-
1
ual’s unique biological, physical, or physiological
2
characteristics that is linked or reasonably
3
linkable to an individual, including—
4
(i) fingerprints;
5
(ii) voice prints;
6
(iii) iris or retina scans;
7
(iv) facial or hand mapping, geometry,
8
or templates; or
9
(v) gait or personally identifying phys-
10
ical movements.
11
(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘‘biometric in-
12
formation’’ does not include—
13
(i) a digital or physical photograph;
14
(ii) an audio or video recording; or
15
(iii) information generated from a dig-
16
ital or physical photograph, or an audio or
17
video recording, that cannot be used to
18
identify an individual.
19
(7) COVERED INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘covered
20
individual’’, with respect to an employer, means an
21
individual—
22
(A) who is employed by, or otherwise per-
23
forming work for remuneration for, the em-
24
ployer, including such an individual who is—
25
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•S 262 IS
(i) any individual performing work for
1
remuneration for an employer described in
2
clauses (i)(I) and (ii) of paragraph
3
(10)(A);
4
(ii) any individual performing work
5
for remuneration for an entity described in
6
paragraph (10)(A)(i)(II);
7
(iii) any individual performing work
8
for remuneration for an employing office
9
described in paragraph (10)(A)(i)(III);
10
(iv) any individual performing work
11
for remuneration for an employing office
12
described in paragraph (10)(A)(i)(IV); or
13
(v) any individual performing work for
14
remuneration for an employing agency de-
15
scribed in paragraph (10)(A)(i)(V); or
16
(B) who is an applicant to the employer.
17
(8) DATA.—The term ‘‘data’’, with respect to a
18
covered individual, means any information that iden-
19
tifies, relates to, describes, is reasonably capable of
20
being associated with, or could reasonably be linked,
21
directly or indirectly, with the covered individual, re-
22
gardless of how the information is collected, in-
23
ferred, or obtained, including—
24
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•S 262 IS
(A) personally identifiable information with
1
respect to the covered individual, including any
2
name, contact information, government-issued
3
identification number, financial information,
4
criminal background, location information, pho-
5
tographs, biometric information, or employment
6
history associated with the covered individual;
7
(B) any information related to the work-
8
place activities with respect to the covered indi-
9
vidual, including—
10
(i) human resources information, in-
11
cluding the contents of a personnel file or
12
performance evaluation;
13
(ii) work process information, such as
14
productivity and efficiency information and
15
information on breaks;
16
(iii) information that captures work-
17
place communications and interactions, in-
18
cluding emails, texts, internal message
19
boards, and customer interaction and rat-
20
ings;
21
(iv) device usage and information, in-
22
cluding calls placed or precise geolocation
23
information;
24
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•S 262 IS
(v) audio-video information and other
1
information collected from sensors, includ-
2
ing movement tracking, images, videos,
3
and thermal-sensor information;
4
(vi) biometric information;
5
(vii) information from a personality
6
test taken by a covered individual, includ-
7
ing such a test given electronically at the
8
beginning of or during a work shift;
9
(viii) inputs for an automated decision
10
system or any automated decision system
11
output; and
12
(ix) information that is collected or
13
generated to mitigate the spread of infec-
14
tious diseases, including COVID–19, or to
15
comply with any public health measure;
16
and
17
(C) online information with respect to the
18
covered individual that is collected while the
19
covered individual is on- or off-duty, including
20
any internet protocol address associated with
21
the covered individual, the social media activity
22
of the covered individual, any advertisement-re-
23
lated tracking identifier associated with the cov-
24
ered individual, the internet browsing history of
25
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•S 262 IS
the covered individual, or other digital sources
1
or unique identifiers associated with the covered
2
individual.
3
(9) EMPLOY.—The term ‘‘employ’’ has the
4
meaning given such term in section 3 of the Fair
5
Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203).
6
(10) EMPLOYER.—
7
(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘employer’’
8
means any person who is—
9
(i)(I) a covered employer who is not
10
described in any other subclause of this
11
clause;
12
(II) an entity employing a State em-
13
ployee described in section 304(a) of the
14
Government Employee Rights Act of 1991
15
(42 U.S.C. 2000e–16c(a));
16
(III) an employing office, as defined
17
in section 101 of the Congressional Ac-
18
countability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301);
19
(IV) an employing office, as defined in
20
section 411(c) of title 3, United States
21
Code; or
22
(V) an employing agency covered
23
under subchapter V of chapter 63 of title
24
5, United States Code; and
25
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•S 262 IS
(ii) engaged in commerce (including
1
government), or an industry or activity af-
2
fecting commerce (including government).
3
(B) COVERED
EMPLOYER.—In subpara-
4
graph (A), the term ‘‘covered employer’’—
5
(i) means any person engaged in com-
6
merce or in any industry or activity affect-
7
ing commerce who employs, or otherwise
8
engages for the performance of work for
9
remuneration, 11 or more covered individ-
10
uals;
11
(ii) includes—
12
(I) any person who acts, directly
13
or indirectly, in the interest of a cov-
14
ered employer in relation to any indi-
15
vidual performing work for remunera-
16
tion for such covered employer;
17
(II) any successor in interest of a
18
covered employer;
19
(III) any public agency; and
20
(IV) the Government Account-
21
ability Office and the Library of Con-
22
gress; and
23
(iii) does not include any labor organi-
24
zation (other than when acting as an em-
25
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•S 262 IS
ployer) or anyone acting in the capacity of
1
officer or agent of such labor organization.
2
(C) PUBLIC
AGENCY.—For purposes of
3
this paragraph, a public agency shall be consid-
4
ered to be a person engaged in commerce or in
5
an industry or activity affecting commerce.
6
(D) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this
7
paragraph, the terms ‘‘commerce’’, ‘‘person’’,
8
and ‘‘public agency’’ have the meanings given
9
the terms in section 3 of the Fair Labor Stand-
10
ards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203).
11
(11) EMPLOYMENT-RELATED
DECISION.—The
12
term ‘‘employment-related decision’’ includes a deci-
13
sion by an employer with regard to—
14
(A) hiring a covered individual (including
15
any decision with regard to interviewing or re-
16
viewing an applicant);
17
(B) firing, taking a disciplinary action
18
against, demoting, or reassigning duties of a
19
covered individual; or
20
(C) any other term, condition, or privilege
21
of employment or work of the covered indi-
22
vidual, such as relating to pay, scheduling, or
23
hours worked or promoting a covered indi-
24
vidual.
25
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•S 262 IS
(12) GOVERNMENT ENTITY.—The term ‘‘gov-
1
ernment entity’’ means—
2
(A) a Federal agency (as such term is de-
3
fined in section 3371 of title 5, United States
4
Code);
5
(B) a State or political subdivision thereof;
6
(C) any agency, authority, or instrumen-
7
tality of a State or political subdivision thereof;
8
or
9
(D) a Tribal government or political sub-
10
division thereof.
11
(13) INDIAN TRIBE.—The term ‘‘Indian Tribe’’
12
means any Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, na-
13
tion, pueblo, village, community, component band, or
14
component reservation individually identified (includ-
15
ing parenthetically) in the list published most re-
16
cently as of the date of enactment of this Act pursu-
17
ant to section 104 of the Federally Recognized In-
18
dian Tribe List Act of 1994 (25 U.S.C. 5131).
19
(14) LABOR ORGANIZATION.—The term ‘‘labor
20
organization’’ has the meaning given the term in
21
section 2(5) of the National Labor Relations Act (29
22
U.S.C. 152(5)), except that such term shall also in-
23
clude—
24
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•S 262 IS
(A) any organization composed of labor or-
1
ganizations, such as a labor union federation or
2
a State or municipal labor body; and
3
(B) any organization which would be in-
4
cluded in the definition for such term under
5
such section 2(5) but for the fact that the orga-
6
nization represents—
7
(i) individuals employed by the United
8
States, any wholly owned Government cor-
9
poration, any Federal Reserve Bank, or
10
any State or political subdivision thereof;
11
(ii) individuals employed by persons
12
subject to the Railway Labor Act (45
13
U.S.C. 151 et seq.); or
14
(iii) individuals employed as agricul-
15
tural laborers.
16
(15) PRECISE GEOLOCATION INFORMATION.—
17
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘precise
18
geolocation information’’ means information
19
that is derived from a device or technology that
20
reveals the past or present physical location of
21
an individual or a device that identifies or is
22
linked or reasonably linkable to 1 or more indi-
23
viduals, with sufficient precision to identify
24
street level location information of the indi-
25
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•S 262 IS
vidual or device or the location of the individual
1
or device within a range of 1,850 feet or less.
2
(B)
EXCLUSION.—The
term
‘‘precise
3
geolocation information’’ does not include infor-
4
mation described in subparagraph (A) identifi-
5
able or derived solely from the visual content of
6
a legally obtained image, including the location
7
of the device that captured such image.
8
(16) PREDISPUTE ARBITRATION AGREEMENT.—
9
The term ‘‘predispute arbitration agreement’’ means
10
any agreement to arbitrate a dispute that has not
11
yet arisen at the time of the making of the agree-
12
ment.
13
(17) PREDISPUTE JOINT-ACTION WAIVER.—The
14
term ‘‘predispute joint-action waiver’’ means an
15
agreement, whether or not part of a predispute arbi-
16
tration agreement
[Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]