Workplace Surveillance Laws: NSW and Victoria Move to Legislate Controls Amid AI and WFH Boom
Australian Financial Review
SKIPPED
Details
- Date Published
- 18 Nov 2025
- Priority Score
- 3
- Australian
- Yes
- Created
- 20 Nov 2025, 11:54 am
Description
The Allan government has backed greater protections for workers against spying bosses as technology and work from home test the boundaries of employee privacy.
Summary
The article outlines legislative moves by New South Wales and Victoria to tighten workplace surveillance laws in response to the challenges posed by remote work and advanced artificial intelligence technologies. The legislative proposals aim to enhance privacy protections for employees, addressing concerns of excessive monitoring by employers. These developments highlight how AI and WFH trends are reshaping labor policies in Australia, with implications for privacy standards in the workplace. This effort represents a significant step in Australian policy towards managing the intersection of technical capabilities and employee rights, although it does not focus explicitly on catastrophic AI risks.
Body
Work & CareersWorkplaceWorkplace surveillancePrint articleDavid Marin-GuzmanandPaul KarpNov 19, 2025 – 8.11pmSaveLog inorSubscribeto save articleShareCopy linkCopiedEmailLinkedInTwitterFacebookCopy linkCopiedShare via...Gift this articleSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber?LoginTwo of the most populous states have moved to legislate controls on workplace surveillance amid a boom in work from home and artificial intelligence, sparking concerns from employers of overreach.Victoria’s Allan government this week backed recommendations by a parliamentary inquiry to develop new workplace surveillance protections in line with its promised work-from-home laws as advanced technology tests the boundaries of workers’ privacy.Loading...David Marin-Guzmanwrites about industrial relations, workplace, policy and leadership from Sydney.Connect withDavidonTwitter.EmailDavidatdavid.marin-guzman@afr.comPaul Karpis The Australian Financial Review’s NSW political correspondent.SaveLog inorSubscribeto save articleShareCopy linkCopiedEmailLinkedInTwitterFacebookCopy linkCopiedShare via...Gift this articleSubscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber?LoginLicense articleFollow the topics, people and companies that matter to you.Find out moreRead MoreWorkplace surveillanceWorking from homeIndustrial relationsChris MinnsJacinta AllanAIBusiness Council of AustraliaFetching latest articlesThis lawyer has collected more than 600 broochesHannah TattersallPrices for this under-the-radar watch brand are surgingWhy your mascara and skincare should be in a time capsuleAustralia’s 50 highest-paid CEOs in 2025 revealedPatrick DurkinWhy more company directors need to speak outWhy this CEO insists on 2 referee checks, and often does them herselfAn MJ Bale shorts-suit and a new IWC watch to ring in summerEugenie KellyWhy Mount Gambier’s rock-star grapes are worth travelling forForget the typical Euro hustle – Bordeaux is a place to pauseInside Australia’s most expensive country estateGreg BearupThe moment that led to a $750m coal fortune and a Ferrari obsessionLaundys sell pub on NSW’s Central Coast for $18.5 million