The California Supreme Court held held that employees have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the workplace, but that right has limits. And it doesn’t prevent employers from conducting some hidden surveillance in an employee’s office for “legitimate business concerns.”

“An employer may have sound reasons for monitoring the workplace,” Justice Marvin Baxter wrote for a unanimous court, “and an intrusion upon the employee’s reasonable privacy expectations may not be egregious or actionable under the particular circumstances.”

This ruling came about in October 2002 when office manager Abigail Hernandez and administrative assistant Maria Lopez discovered hidden video equipment in the office they shared at Pasadena’s Hillsides Children’s Center, a facility that houses abused children. Executive Director John Hitchcock had installed the equipment in an unsuccessful attempt to catch someone who had been viewing pornography on Lopez’s computer in the wee hours of the morning.

Hitchcock was particularly concerned because many of the 66 boys and girls at the center had been the victims of emotional, physical and sexual abuse. No one was ever apprehended.

Neither Hernandez nor Lopez were suspects, and the camera — activated only after work hours — never recorded them. Nonetheless, they were distraught upon discovering the camera and sued for invasion of privacy.

Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge C. Edward Simpson granted summary judgment to the center. But Los Angeles’ 2nd District Court of Appeal reversed in 2006, holding that the mere placement of the surveillance equipment in the women’s office without their knowledge invaded their privacy.

On Monday, the Supreme Court justices split the difference, saying that while they could understand the two women’s “dismay,” the placement of the hidden camera wasn’t egregious, and the employer had a valid reason for doing what he did.

This court decision has given employers the right to use surveillance systems and hidden cameras for legitimate business concerns.

The Halton Catholic District School Board might install updated video security systems at its eight high schools.

Board staff is recommending the purchase of new surveillance technology at an estimated cost of $2 million.

If approved by trustees, possibly at the June 21 board meeting, the goal is to begin installing the systems during the summer and have the project completed by Dec. 31, 2011.

Currently only three of the board’s eight secondary schools — Notre Dame in Burlington and Oakville’s St. Ignatius of Loyola and Holy Trinity — have video surveillance systems, which utilize a limited number of cameras.

The existing video security systems have either limited capabilities or are technologically outdated, according to Catholic board administrative staff.

The new system would employ two to three-dozen motion-activated cameras at each high school covering areas such as corridors, entrance doors, the cafeteria, gymnasium, library and selected exterior grounds areas. Washrooms and classrooms would not be monitored by video.

“A state-of-the-art video surveillance camera system in the board’s secondary schools will assist with and improve the safety and security for students, staff, visitors and board property,” states a board staff report presented to trustees at Tuesday’s board meeting.

Halton Regional Police reviewed the proposed building and grounds surveillance coverage areas, provided input and concurred with the proposed video surveillance strategy, say board staff.

A school board committee established to investigate the video surveillance camera system options available has pre-qualified four camera system vendors.

An electrical engineering consultant was consulted to prepare a video surveillance camera system performance specification and tender (contract) bid package.

The project would go to tender once it has been approved by the board.

Funding for the camera system would come from the board’s Facility Renewal Reserve. The balance in the fund is expected to be about $13.4 million by this September.

Oakville trustee Anthony Danko questioned the need for such an expenditure, especially when the board is projecting a multi-million dollar budget deficit for 2011-12.

“I don’t see any reason why we need this system. We just heard (about) our bad news budget.”

In response to Danko’s concerns, facilities superintendent Giacomo Corbacio reminded trustees that funding for the project would come from a reserve fund and not the board’s operating (day-to-day funding) budget.

Burlington trustee John Morrison said he is familiar with such surveillance systems but has mixed feelings about them.

“The systems are terrific and sophisticated, but we have to be budget conscious.”

Education Director Michael Pautler told trustees a report on such a security project came before the previous board of trustees two years ago.

“We see it as an issue of school safety. Principals and vice-principals spend a lot of time ensuring the safety of students. Where cameras are (in high schools) it seems to have (resulted in) a safer, calmer school environment.”

Pautler also noted that besides a possible deterrent effect, the cameras should make it easier for school administrators to deal with school vandalism or other negative issues after the fact because of the availability of reviewing videotaped evidence.

Oakville trustee and board chair Alice Anne LeMay seemed to be in favour of a new security camera system.

“If it acts as a deterrent, it will pay for itself. We have a lot of vandalism at our schools.”

What works well in a school will work just as well and have the same benefits in your home or business.

The installation went smoothly, and we had him up and running in short order. He was now able to watch the restaurant from home on his laptop. He was so pleased with the system that he had it installed in all his restaurants. He has called me several times to tell how much he appreciated me taking the time to convince him this was a good move.

On one of the calls he just casually mentioned that four months after installing the systems, he has not had a workmans compensation claim in two months, something that was very common before the cameras were installed. This alone is paying for the systems. Not only is it saving him money, it is saving him time.

He isn’t filling out forms, or going to hearings.

The cameras have foiled the old accident game. No more paying for back injuries that never happened. The employees now know that if they fell, the camera would see it, and the result is no more phony claims.

This was something that never occurred to me when I was selling the system, but it sure is a big benefit that I won’t leave out in the future.

Insurance money is a big part of any business with employees, and if you have a good record of being “accident free” your premiums go down, and many times substantially. Over the span of a few years that could mean a much bigger slice of the pie going in your pocket, or to funding another business, or to making repairs or capital improvements.

My Florida friend tunes in to his different operations at different times every day, and takes a few notes on what he sees. Then he gets together with his managers and implements procedures to fix what is wrong. His estimate is that the surveillance systems paid for themselves in the first month, and that since then he has put thousands and thousands of dollars on his bottom line.

“Sometimes,” he says, “it is the little things that I see. But when you have multiple properties, and they are all doing a little thing wrong, it’s a big thing. If all your bartenders are over pouring, that’s a tremendous amount of money in a month. If we are over cooking four or five steaks a night in six locations, that’s a lot of money in a month in waste. I fix one or two things at a time, and the bottom line results are outstanding.”

I’m sure there are going to be even more benefits that I haven’t thought of as surveillance systems become more and more commonplace. One thing I know for sure though, is that the benefits already far outweigh the cost.

Bobby Jo is a big fan of her dogs, four of them to be exact. She has rescued all four of them from certain death. In fact, in addition to the dogs she has adopted herself, she has saved another forty by getting other folks to adopt them. Some had as little as half an hour left before they would have met the Big Sleep.

Bobby Jo wanted a way to look in on her dogs when she was at work. Though she had solved most of their issues, occasionally she still came home to big mess. She felt if she looked in from time to time, she could see who the troublemaker was, and what started the fracas.

Since the dogs were only allowed in certain areas of the house, she opted for a four channel system wireless surveillance system. It took only a couple of hours to install, and everything went fine.

On Monday Bobby Jo opened up her laptop and dialed in to her surveillance system for her first look at what was going on back home.   They were all power napping, and not a tail stirred. After lunch she dialed in again, and they were in the kitchen. The biggest, Bork was in the process of tipping over the trash can, and the three others were waiting anxiously for it to happen.

When Bork got the can tipped over, Brad, the smallest dog, went straight into the can. All you could see of him was his tail, which was wagging heartily. The other dogs didn’t like this, and started nipping at him, trying to get him out, but he wasn’t budging. Bork jumped on the can, and this did move Brad out. Then there was a big hullabaloo involving all of them.

That night Bobby Jo childproofed the lock on that cabinet door, so they couldn’t get in.

They next day she looked in, and Bork was in the kitchen, and try as he might, he couldn’t get that door open. Since there was no prospect of getting food, the other three weren’t interested, and had retired to their quarters.

Another check found them all snoring in the afternoon.

It’s what dogs do best.

Bobby Jo checks in on her hounds every few hours through her surveillance system.  She has managed to control them very well by observing them, and then making changes that thwart some of their most unruly aspects.

But most of all, she just likes watching her babies.