Recording Colleagues and Managers at Work in the ACT

The Australian Capital Territory is one of only two jurisdictions in this cluster with a dedicated workplace surveillance statute. The Workplace Privacy Act 2011 (ACT) requires at least 14 days written notice before an employer conducts optical, tracking or data surveillance of a worker, and covert surveillance needs a court-issued authority. Workplace audio, notably, is not covered by this Act at all; it stays under the general Listening Devices Act 1992 (ACT).

The ACT's Dedicated Workplace Surveillance Statute

Unlike Tasmania and the Northern Territory, the ACT has enacted a statute specifically for workplace surveillance: the Workplace Privacy Act 2011 (ACT). Its coverage is narrower than its name suggests. Section 11 defines "surveillance" for the Act as surveillance using a "surveillance device," and that term is defined as a data surveillance device, an optical surveillance device or a tracking device, expressly excluding a listening device. In practice this means the Act governs cameras, GPS trackers and computer-monitoring software at work, while audio recording of a workplace conversation, whether by an employer or an employee, is governed by the separate Listening Devices Act 1992 (ACT) s.4, described below.

Jurisdiction scope: This article addresses workplace recording in the ACT under the Workplace Privacy Act 2011 (ACT), the Listening Devices Act 1992 (ACT), the federal Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), and the federal Privacy Act 1988 (Cth). It does not address workplace surveillance law in other Australian states or territories; for the national picture, see workplace surveillance and monitoring in Australia. For the ACT's general recording rules outside the workplace, see Australian Capital Territory recording laws.

Notified Surveillance: The 14-Day Rule

Section 13 of the Workplace Privacy Act 2011 provides that an employer may only conduct surveillance of a worker in a workplace if written notice is given and the surveillance is conducted in accordance with it. The notice must be given at least 14 days before the surveillance starts, unless the worker agrees to a shorter period, or a new worker starts at a workplace where surveillance already exists or will begin less than 14 days after they start, in which case notice must be given before the new worker starts work. The notice must state the kind of device to be used, how the surveillance will be conducted, who will regularly be the subject of it, when it starts, whether it is continuous or intermittent, its duration, the purpose for which records may be used and disclosed, and that the worker may consult the employer about it. An employer need not give notice for an optical device used somewhere that is not the worker's usual workplace. A notice can take the form of a general policy rather than an individual letter.

Covert Surveillance: A Magistrates Court Authority

Where an employer wants to conduct surveillance without notice, the Act requires a covert surveillance authority issued by the ACT Magistrates Court. Under section 28, the Court may issue an authority on application if satisfied there are reasonable grounds, after considering the seriousness of the suspected unlawful activity, the extent to which the proposed surveillance might intrude on a worker's privacy, any heightened expectation of privacy in a non-work area, whether other appropriate investigative methods exist, whether a law enforcement agency would be more appropriate to investigate, and the suitability of the person nominated to supervise the surveillance. Under section 30, an authority may be issued for a maximum of 30 days. This is a materially more structured process than the general lawful-interests exception that governs most other Australian workplaces, and it applies to camera, tracking and data surveillance only, not to a manager or employee simply recording a spoken conversation.

Absolutely Prohibited Areas

Section 41 makes it an offence, carrying a maximum of 50 penalty units, for an employer to conduct surveillance of a worker in a "prohibited non-work area": a toilet facility, a change room, a shower or other bathing facility, a parent or nursing room, a prayer room, a sick bay, a first-aid room, or any other area prescribed by regulation. This prohibition is absolute; no amount of notice or a covert surveillance authority can authorise surveillance in these areas.

Where the Listening Devices Act Still Applies

Because the Workplace Privacy Act excludes listening devices from its coverage, recording a spoken conversation at work, whether a performance review, a disciplinary meeting, or a casual conversation with a colleague, is governed by the general Listening Devices Act 1992 (ACT) s.4, exactly as it would be outside the workplace. Section 4(1)(b) prohibits recording your own conversation, but section 4(3) excuses it where every principal party consents, or where you consent and either the recording protects your own lawful interests, or, independently, is simply not made to be shared with anyone outside the conversation. An employee who records a meeting purely for their own reference, with no intention to share it, is generally covered by this second, no-publication basis without needing to establish a lawful interest at all. Section 4(4) separately provides that the ACT government itself cannot rely on the lawful-interests basis when using a listening device, though it can rely on consent or the no-publication basis.

The Privacy Act's Employee-Records Exemption

The federal Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) applies to ACT employers with annual turnover exceeding $3 million, and to all health service providers and Commonwealth agencies. Section 7B(3) of that Act exempts an APP entity's handling of an existing employee's own employment records from most Australian Privacy Principles, but the exemption does not cover job applicants, contractors, or volunteers, and does not authorise surveillance that would otherwise breach the Workplace Privacy Act or the Listening Devices Act. ACT government agencies are separately subject to the Territory Privacy Principles under the Information Privacy Act 2014 (ACT).

Covert Recording and Your Job: The Fair Work Risk

A recording can be entirely lawful under both ACT statutes and still put an employee's job at risk. The Fair Work Commission has repeatedly treated covert recording of workplace conversations as damaging to the trust an employment relationship requires. In Karen Altham-Wooding v PKDK Adventures Pty Ltd [2024] FWC 2753, the Commission held that secretly recording workplace conversations is "highly inappropriate, irrespective of whether it constitutes an offence in the relevant jurisdiction." An ACT employee should treat the criminal-law question and the employment-law question as two separate risks.

The New Civil Layer: The Statutory Tort at Work

Since 10 June 2025, Schedule 2 to the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) creates a federal statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy, actionable without proof of damage, alongside the state and territory criminal offences. A colleague covertly recorded or surveilled in a genuinely private setting, with no consent and no lawful basis, may have a civil claim as well as a possible criminal complaint. The tort is new and untested in workplace fact patterns specifically; this article does not predict how a court would decide any particular case.

Disclaimer: This article presents general legal information about workplace recording law in the Australian Capital Territory. It does not constitute legal advice. The information covers the Workplace Privacy Act 2011 (ACT), the Listening Devices Act 1992 (ACT) and applicable Commonwealth legislation as in force as of 2026-07-22. Laws can change. If you have a specific legal situation, consult a legal practitioner admitted in the Australian Capital Territory or the relevant Australian state or territory.

For the ACT's general consent rules, see Australian Capital Territory recording laws. For recording your own phone calls in the ACT, see phone call recording in the ACT. For security cameras and CCTV in the ACT, see security camera laws in the ACT. For the national picture on workplace monitoring, see workplace surveillance and monitoring in Australia.

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Last updated: 2026-07-22. Statutes cited reflect their in-force versions as of 2026-07-22.