On June 4, 2026, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed Public Act No. 26-73 (SB 472), “An Act Concerning the Electronic Surveillance of Employees,” which repeals and replaces Conn. Gen. Stat. § 31-48d. The law takes effect October 1, 2026, and significantly updates Connecticut’s longstanding requirements governing electronic monitoring of employees by employers.
Connecticut has regulated workplace electronic monitoring since 1998, and presently, several states have some form of notice, acknowledgment, and/or consent requirement for organizations engaging in electronic monitoring of their workforce. These states include California, Delaware, Maine, New Jersey, and New York.
Before discussing the updated notice requirements, it is important to note that the new law does not change the definition of electronic monitoring. It remains:
“Electronic monitoring” means the collection of information on an employer’s premises concerning employees’ activities or communications by any means other than direct observation, including the use of a computer, telephone, wire, radio, camera, electromagnetic, photoelectronic or photo-optical systems, but not including the collection of information (A) for security purposes in common areas of the employer’s premises which are held out for use by the public, or (B) which is prohibited under state or federal law.
The use of cameras or the tracking of activities and communications on a company’s information systems quickly come to mind. However, the rapid expansion of AI technologies and the various use cases also should be assessed. Consider AI tools and use cases such as AI transcription and note taking tools, chatbots, and performance management platforms. These and other tools and use cases may require employers to revisit their notice and posting obligations under this expanded law in Connecticut.
What also remains the same is the definition of employee:
“Employee” means any person who performs services for an employer in a business of the employer, if the employer has the right to control and direct the person as to (A) the result to be accomplished by the services, and (B) the details and means by which such result is accomplished.
Updated Prior Written Notice and Posting Requirements
The updated monitoring law enhances the existing prior written notice requirements for employers engaging in electronic monitoring. Beginning October 1, 2026:
- in addition to providing prior written notice to all employees who may be affected by electronic monitoring and specifying the types of monitoring, employers must inform those employees of the specific locations on the employer’s premises where such monitoring may occur; and
- the existing obligation to post a notice of electronic monitoring in a conspicuous place which is readily available for viewing by employees, must also be posted in the specific location on the employer’s premises where the monitoring may occur. That posting also must describe the specific locations on the employer’s premises where the monitoring may occur.
Additionally, for employees hired on and after October 1, 2026, employers engaged in electronic monitoring must provide to such employees (prior to commencement of employment) a plain language written statement advising which activities are prohibited and may be monitored without giving prior written notice. Such activities include employees engaged in conduct which (i) violates the law, (ii) violates the legal rights of the employer or the employer’s employees, or (iii) creates a hostile workplace environment, and for which electronic monitoring can produce evidence of this misconduct.
Notably, the requirement to disclose the specific location of the premises being monitored does not apply where the premises is an airport, or when the employer has reasonable grounds to conduct such monitoring for security and employee safety purposes.
The updated monitoring law did not change the enforcement provisions. The Labor Commissioner may impose a civil penalty on any person that violates the notice and posting requirements. The maximum penalties are $500 for the first offense, $1,000 for the second, and $3,000 for the third and subsequent offenses.
Connecticut employers should review their monitoring activities, including deployments of AI tools and their respective use cases, and assess compliance with applicable posting, notice, and/or acknowledgment requirements in Connecticut and other states as applicable.