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Can I sue my employer for invasion of privacy?
Anonymous5 views3 answers
I was sick one day and went to the doctor. I brought my employer a note from a doctor to prove the reason for my absence the following day. He was very pushy about it and even wanted me to bring the note the day of my visit! The doctor who happens to be a relative of mine was receiving many phone calls from someone claiming to be a cardiologist trying to confirm my absence (I went in for a stomach flue, not a heart condition).Then he made me call the doctors office on speaker phone so they could confirm my absence and he could hear it. The lady told me over the phone that some cardiologist was calling all day asking about you and when I looked back at my employer he stated that it was probably company HR (I just gave the note to him that day). I believe it was my employer calling
The conduct you describe was certainly over-besring and offensive, but it does not constitute an invasion of privacy. The facts that you describe are that your employer made aggressive efforts to confirm by telephone your doctor visit. This conduct is unlikely to be found sufficient to support any legal claim or action.
Aaron B MaduffEmployment / Labor AttorneyChicago, IL ·
Employment is at will and your employer can terminate you for any reason so long as it isn't an illegal reason. As a result, you may want to provide more information anyway. I am not familiar with the criminal law, but there may be an issue with your employer impersonating a cardiologist. I would be concerned about your doctor releasing more information than you would like, but it sounds like he was careful here.
Your doctor's office did what it was required to do to protect the personally identifiable information under HIPAA. Your employer crossed the line of decency, but not illegality.
