To see or not to see: Disciplined worker entitled to view employer’s surveillance footage

Although it involves the claim of a union employee under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), a recent labor board decision reminds us that, under some circumstances, an employee may request that their employer provide them with workplace surveillance footage that is relevant to a disciplinary decision.

Casino’s surveillance system captures video of staff meeting

Magic City Casino is located in Miami, Florida, a state that requires all casinos and gaming establishments to have surveillance systems operating on their premises. On September 19, 2023, the casino’s housekeeping department manager, Julio Paez, held a meeting for the casino’s housekeeping staff. According to Paez, during the meeting a housekeeper “in a wrong way [gesticulated] a lot and loudly, she approached the laundry cart and moved it in a bad way. She grabbed a container and threw it, she then replied to [ a co-worker] inappropriately.” As a result, Paez issued a verbal warning to the offending housekeeper. The housekeeper claimed that she was merely demonstrating how another employee had behaved and denied saying anything—inappropriate or otherwise—to the co-worker at the meeting. The meeting had been recorded by a casino surveillance camera, but the video did not include audio recording. Paez issued the discipline based on what he observed the housekeeper doing at the meeting. He never watched any video footage of the meeting.

When the housekeeper complained about her discipline, the casino’s general manager and HR director watched the recording.