German minister calls for law against spying on employees

0 Comments | AFP, March, 2008

BERLIN (AFP) — Germany's consumer protection minister Horst Seehofer has called for a law to regulate gathering information on employees after revelations that discount retailer Lidl had secretly monitored its workers.

"Lidl's surveillance methods are unworthy... and unacceptable," Seehofer said in an interview to be published Sunday in the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

"The incident clearly shows that we need a law on protecting data concerning employees."

Seehofer added that "given modern technological possibilities, such a law should have appeared a long time ago," saying "an exemplary fine" was indispensable.

German news media reported last week that Lidl was under investigation for violations of labour and data protection laws by installing hidden...