British Columbia’s privacy commissioner has found that a farm labour company infringed on the privacy rights of its employees by implementing video surveillance, even though an investigation revealed shocking images of abuse against chickens at some Fraser Valley facilities.

Acting Information and Privacy Commissioner Drew McArthur launched the investigation after undercover video emerged in June showing Elite Farm Services Ltd. employees stomping on live chickens and ripping the birds apart.

“My office unequivocally condemns all forms of animal abuse,” McArthur said in a report released Wednesday. “But after reviewing the media coverage of this matter, I was concerned that video surveillance was being used as a ‘quick fix,’ without thoughtful consideration of its privacy impacts.”

Released by anti-cruelty group Mercy for Animals, the footage showed workers committing “sadistic” acts against the birds, including slamming chickens against crates, using them to mimic sex acts and ripping their legs off.

The undercover operative who shot the video was hired by the Chilliwack-based company in May to work as a “chicken catcher,” someone who loads the animals into crates so they can be moved to processing plants.

Within days of the video becoming public, Elite Services announced that it would require at least one supervisor and two staff members to wear body cameras on their safety vests. The footage, the company said, would be reviewed at the end of the day, then saved for 30 days.

In his report, however, McArthur concluded that this attempt to curb animal abuse at its facilities “did not access the privacy risks associated with implementing video surveillance.”

The Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA) governs the collection, use and disclosure of personal information. It is meant to recognize both the rights of individuals to have their personal information protected and the need organizations sometimes have to collect that information.

“The employees subjected to the surveillance were not the same employees who were responsible for the misconduct; those individuals no longer work for the company,” McArthur wrote. “We found that the company was not authorized to collect the information under PIPA because the purposes for which it was collecting and using personal information were not reasonable.”

McArthur also found the surveillance protocol resulted in Elite Farm Services collecting information about others without consent, including farmers, truckers and contractors.

The report also came with seven recommendations, including that the company create a privacy policy that clearly states how and why it collects information as well as a procedure to handle privacy complaints.

Mercy for Animals Canada, however, said that even if Elite Services is able to implement a surveillance method that complies with PIPA, it will only help prevent animal abuse on farms if a third-party check is in place.

“Every farm and slaughterhouse in Canada should install video monitoring systems and live-stream the footage to the internet or a third-party auditing firm to help prevent animal cruelty and increase transparency in food production,” vice-president Krista Hiddema said in an email statement Wednesday. “Without third-party checks in place, video monitoring will be ineffective.”

Six employees were fired amid public outcry over the abuse allegations.

The incidents shown in the footage are also being investigated by the BC SPCA and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. A complaint was also filed with the RCMP.

Elite Services has not commented on McArthur’s report, but told his office that the chicken processing and catching industries are moving toward an “independent system of audits and third-party certifications.”

The company stopped video recording its employees once it became aware of the investigation.

Elite Services works directly for Sofina Foods Inc., which sells much of its chicken under the Lilydale brand in major grocery stores including Safeway and Loblaws.