What is the key difference between British Columbia’s PIPA and PIPEDA?

The key difference highlighted here is that British Columbia's Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) includes specific protections for employee information, which distinguishes it from the federal Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA).

PIPA is designed to apply to private sector organizations operating in British Columbia, and it specifically covers personal information collected by employers about their employees. This includes both the manner in which information is collected and how it is used, ensuring that employees have rights regarding their personal data in the employment context.

On the other hand, while PIPEDA applies to personal information held by private sector organizations across Canada, it does not include provisions that explicitly protect employee information in the same manner, especially in relation to the employment context when it is covered by provincial laws like PIPA. This is an important nuance in the regulatory environment that affects how organizations handle employee data specifically in British Columbia.