Does Europe need a single law on what staff can do in cyberspace?

As the line between personal and working lives becomes blurred, the tension between employees’ privacy rights and the employer’s right to manage grows. Most employers have policies on email and internet use and are anxious to establish effective, integrated policies and practices in these areas. For those operating internationally, this can be tricky.

It is difficult for employers to develop integrated policies on blogging, social networking sites and “virtual worlds” that will work well in several European countries. Not only are state laws different, but the law in this area is still evolving. The first employment case involving blogging was in the US. Heather Armstrong was dismissed in 2002 for making derogatory comments about her employer in a blog.