Is it legal for employers to search their employees personal belongings?

Question

I know that employers have the right to search, but only under certain conditions. I was under the impression that they were only allowed to search if they had cause. They aren't allowed to search systematicaly, every person, in front of all the employees. And they aren't allowed to terminate the employee on the spot if they find merchandise that mihgt not have been paid for or other materials that might conflict with their policies. I know that companies are allowed to search if it is for security purposes, but isn't it taking it too far when they're checking and employee's bag every time they leave the store? Keep in mind that this store is in a mall, and has no bathroom of it's own. The employee has to leave the store to use a restroom. I just want to know where the boundary lines a drawn and what exactly the employer can and cannot do. And if the employee's rights have been violated, what can the employee do about it?

Another question I have to go with this is, does there have to be an officer present? I was also told that ONLY law enforcement officers can LEGALLY search any person. And an employer must have an officer present at any and all searchs conducted. Is this true?

Answer 1

Employers have the right to inspect the personal belongings of an employee when entering and leaving the company premises for security and property purposes.

Answer 2

The Fourth Amendment provides protection to all individuals in the government sector against unreasonable search and seizure of their home, personal property.

However, to receive the protection, an employee must have a reasonable expectation of privacy. The employee cannot be searched if there is no reasonable ground of suspicion and all searches should be conducted in a manner that is reasonably related to the objective of the search and not excessively intrusive.

Exceptions to the above are based on the following:

The employee does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in a desk or filing cabinet shared with colleagues or a work area exposed to the public.

Office searches are permissible, if the employee has a reasonable basis for suspecting the employer of wrong doing and the search is confined to non-personal area of his/her office.

Office documents relevant to the company are the property of the employer and can be searched anytime.

Most private sector employers are not covered by this doctrine and there is no law which stops employers from using different technique when suspecting the employee of misconduct. This includes searching the employee’s office or locker without his /her prior permission and requesting the employee to open his/her briefcase or package on leaving a company facility.

However, the employee cannot be searched to discriminate because he/she belongs to a protected class. During the search, the employee cannot be physically, verbally abused or threatened. In most cases, the employer cannot conduct a search in areas which is truly private.

The search cannot be conducted in front of third party that harms the reputation of the employee. The employee can sue the employer, if he/she was wrongfully searched and then fired, demoted, suspended, reprimanded or put on probation.

Also, the police do not have to be involved for the search to be legal. Another problem is the auto of an employee. While the auto is on the employer's grounds, the appellate courts have concluded that the auto is open to an employer search based on the reasonable expectation as outlined above. If the auto is not parked on employer property, then the employer has no authority to conduct a search.

Answer 3

An employer has the right under federal law to search anyone entering, on, or exiting their premises. This does include searching any bags or poesssions they have with them. It doesn't matter if it is for security purposes or if they are checking for stolen merchandise. Also, an employee walking out the mall entrance of the store with unpaid merchandise in their bag constitutes theft and not only can they be terminated, but they could also face arrest. So, the store was completely within their rights when they conducted the search.

Answer 4

They have the right to search you and terminate you on the spot if you have stolen something.Employee theft is a very large problem and getting worse as the economy gets worse. If you don't want to be searched leave everything you don't need in your car and use a clear bag as you purse.Many large companies even provide the clear bags for their employees.

Answer 5

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Answer 6

You should file a formal complaint against your boss and the company. They had no right to do that!

Answer 7

Wow ! I would have totally said no on this one. I had no idea they could do that.

Answer 8

Yes, it is legal.