opening mail

BevS · October 2003

We are a not for profit agency. We have a policy of opening all mail addressed to our company and address no matter whose name is on it. We log it in with a description of what it is so we can look back to make sure certain bills, etc. came in. A few staff don't like this and said they think it is illegal to open mail with their name on it. Is it illegal?

System · October 2003

We are not for profit as well. I don't open mail that has a name on it. I always assumed that it was illegal but then again it is mailed to the company and might be considered company property. If that is the case the only complication I would see is if you opened
non company related mail or WC stuff that would have health related issues in it.

rad · October 2003

When I was a receptionist many years ago opening the mail and stamping it was part of my job. If the concern is privacy, they shouldn't be getting personal mail at work. A person's home mail can not be opened but I'm not so sure about opening business related mail at work... ask your postman, he/she should know.

Sally · October 2003

We are also a not-for-profit and a number of years ago our auditors recommended that any mail that potentially has a check in it be opened by the receptionist and the check logged in. In a review of our policies & procedures last fall our new Development Director said it was not legal for mail addressed to her to be opened by someone else. I checked with our attorney who confirmed what my reply had been--if it is addressed to the company or to an individual in his/her capacity as an employee of the company the mail is indeed company property and may be opened. If something is marked personal and confidential our receptionist does not open it, and she is also very good at determining based upon the return address if it is something related to workers comp for example.

SDDCHR · October 2003

It is not illegal to open mail that comes through your agency. We are a big agency and everyones mail is opened. We didn't do it before but since the Anthrax scare, it is now strictly enforced with procedures in place!

Nat · October 2003

This response was written in our local newspaper several years ago and somewhat addresses your issue:

A mail-room or company-mail person generally has the right to open all mail addressed to people who work for the company, said a law professor. Many companies have policies stating that mail sent to the company address is expected to be for business purposes and will be opened unless it is marked "personal and confidential." If a company opened mail marked "personal," the employee to whom it was addressed might have a civil claim against the company for an invasion of privacy. It would be a close call. An employee generally should have no expectation of privacy with mail or telephone calls at work.

I'd say, if it comes to the company, then it's company property and can be opened by the designated mail person.

dodaniel · October 2003

We are also a small non-profit company. This is how our Personnel Policy addresses this issue:

"All mail received in this office will be treated as business mail. This means the employee in charge of opening, stamping, and distributing mail will open all mail no matter who the envelope is addressed to, stamp the item with the company's date stamp, and then distribute to addressee. If you do not wish for your personal mail to follow this procedure it is your responsibility to have all personal mail sent to your home address. The company will not be responsible for any lost or damaged personal mail."

I hope this helps.

opening mail

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