New York’s New Workplace Social Media Law

November 7, 2023

On September 14, 2023, the Governor of New York Kathy Hochul signed Assembly Bill 836 into law, restricting New York employers access to prospective or current employees personal, private social media accounts. New York now joins over 25 other states that have enacted similar laws related to the scope of workplace use of personal social media accounts. Job applicants and employees in New York will now have increased privacy for social media posts if their accounts are private and used exclusively for personal purposes.

The key changes of the bill include:

• Prohibiting employers from requesting or requiring job applicants or current employees to disclose their social media login information to the employer.
• Prohibiting employers from requesting or requiring job applicants or current employees to login and access their personal accounts while in the presence of the employer.
• Prohibiting employers from requesting or requiring job applicants or current employees to reproduce photos, videos, or other information on their personal social media accounts.
• Prohibiting an employer from discharging, disciplining, or penalizing an employee for refusing to disclose information related to their personal social media account.
• Prohibiting an employer from refusing to hire an applicant if they do not disclose information related to their personal social media account.

It is important to note these changes only apply to “personal” social media accounts, which are defined as accounts or profiles on an electronic medium “used exclusively for personal purposes”. Further, this law only applies to private accounts, as employers may still look at or use information that is publicly available on a prospective or current employees public social media accounts. Employers may lawfully access an employee’s private social media account if the social media account is used for the employers business purposes, but must provide the employee with notice of their right to request access.

It is advisable for employers who are based in or operate in New York to review and modify their policies on prospective and current employee social media accounts, as these changes become effective March 12, 2024.

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