Spanish company fined for mandatory facial recognition employee time tracking
A Spanish company was ordered by the Galician Superior Court of Justice to pay 53,766 euros to an employee for requiring mandatory facial recognition for time tracking when less intrusive alternatives were available. The court found the practice violated fundamental rights and workers' protections under Spanish law.
What happened
A Spanish company required employees to use facial recognition technology to record their work hours. The Tribunal Superior de Justicia de Galicia (TSJG) found that facial recognition for time tracking constituted an unlawful intrusion into fundamental rights when less intrusive alternatives were available, such as company-issued card-based systems.
Reported impact
An employee who challenged the system was awarded 53,766 euros in compensation, comprising 46,266 euros for unlawful termination and 7,500 euros for moral damages.
Index analysis
The court determined that the collection and processing of facial recognition data for time tracking violated legal requirements prohibiting personal data processing without express consent or demonstrated necessity. The tribunal noted that less intrusive methods existed for recording working hours and monitoring compliance with schedules without breaching fundamental rights.
Governance controls
The court ruled the practice constituted a serious violation of the Workers' Statute, justifying compensation and contract termination. The sentence reinforced legal limits on the use of biometric technologies in the workplace.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.