Previous employer using a photo of me for their winter cover

Holly_Kipper

Last spring I was treated unfairly by a company I had dedicated 39 years of my life to which lead me to have a breakdown and resign from my post. At the time my family seeked legal advice via our house insurance, we took it further with the company who then offered me my job back which meant I no longer stood a chance of taking it any further as they offered me the same employment. I decided not to return to the company for the way they treated me, I have managed to pick myself up and move on with my life enjoying time with my family working a normal 9-5 I’m in-Fri job.
Anyway... this week I have noticed the company have used a picture of myself on FRONT cover of their winter magazine? Is this legal? I no longer work for them, and they haven’t asked my permission.

This all may sound a little strange, however I wish to have no association with the company after how they treat their staff.

Many Thanks.

KatrinaWaves

Did you at any point sign anything which gave them permission to use your photos. Im assuming it is a posed photo you were aware was taken, rather than one they sneakily took.

I used to work at a local gym and quite often my photo will come up on marketing leaflets etc as all gym staff were pictured using the equipment/partaking in classes etc. It was all agreed whilst I worked for them and even though I don't anymore I assume they still have the rights to use my photos as they took them and I gave my permission at the time.

I would maybe send a letter asking them to refrain from using your image in future publications. It isnt going to make them pulp the latest issue but it might get them to remove your image from stocks.

Undervalued

Holly_Kipper wrote: »

Last spring I was treated unfairly by a company I had dedicated 39 years of my life to which lead me to have a breakdown and resign from my post. At the time my family seeked legal advice via our house insurance, we took it further with the company who then offered me my job back which meant I no longer stood a chance of taking it any further as they offered me the same employment. I decided not to return to the company for the way they treated me, I have managed to pick myself up and move on with my life enjoying time with my family working a normal 9-5 I’m in-Fri job.
Anyway... this week I have noticed the company have used a picture of myself on FRONT cover of their winter magazine? Is this legal? I no longer work for them, and they haven’t asked my permission.

This all may sound a little strange, however I wish to have no association with the company after how they treat their staff.

Many Thanks.

Broadly speaking you do not need somebody's permission to publish a photograph of them. If you did the majority of photographs you see in newspapers couldn't be published!

It is not quite as simple as that partly due to the growing, judge made, privacy laws but this is a complex area and often considered to be the province of the rich and famous.

Where when and why was the photograph taken? Did you agree to it being taken for some particular purpose? Or, did they just happen to capture a candid photograph of you?

The background to you leaving is irrelevant in all this I'm afraid. The bottom line legally is you resigned of your own free will. If they had the right to use a photograph of you when you were an employee it is unlikely this right has lapsed as a result of you resigning.

What do you hope to gain from this?

Exodi

Send them an email asking them not to do so anymore.

It's not reasonable (practical) to ask they retract the current magazine though.

Not sure there's much more to it, unless your alluding to legal advice on the matter (which I personally think would be a big mistake).

Undervalued

Exodi wrote: »

Send them an email asking them not to do so anymore.

It's not reasonable (practical) to ask they retract the current magazine though.

Not sure there's much more to it, unless your alluding to legal advice on the matter (which I personally think would be a big mistake).

Yes, I agree. It is unlikely they would continue to use the image in the future if they know you object.

Whether you could enforce this, let alone get any redress for the current publication, is another matter and probably best left alone.

Holly_Kipper

I actually left the job due to been forced to resign which now I actually believe is due to them wanting to get away with redundancy pay.
I am just shocked that they have the cheek to use a photo on myself.
The photo is from two years ago where I won an award for fundraising.
Yes okay many thanks for your advice I think I will go ahead and write to the company stating I do not wish to be associated with them and for them not publish anything again, I will also put into writing again for them to take me off the alarm system which I still continue to have calls for!

Happy New Year All

SandraX

Holly_Kipper wrote: »

I actually left the job due to been forced to resign which now I actually believe is due to them wanting to get away with redundancy pay.
I am just shocked that they have the cheek to use a photo on myself.
The photo is from two years ago where I won an award for fundraising.
Yes okay many thanks for your advice I think I will go ahead and write to the company stating I do not wish to be associated with them and for them not publish anything again, I will also put into writing again for them to take me off the alarm system which I still continue to have calls for!

Happy New Year All

Dear OP

Very sorry re the way your ex employer treated you after you devoted a good part of your life to them

Polite email to them requesting they removed in x days. IMO it should work

ATB and keep us updated

KatrinaWaves

Holly_Kipper wrote: »

I actually left the job due to been forced to resign which now I actually believe is due to them wanting to get away with redundancy pay.
I am just shocked that they have the cheek to use a photo on myself.
The photo is from two years ago where I won an award for fundraising.
Yes okay many thanks for your advice I think I will go ahead and write to the company stating I do not wish to be associated with them and for them not publish anything again, I will also put into writing again for them to take me off the alarm system which I still continue to have calls for!

Happy New Year All

For what its worth it wont be personal, they certainly won't be thinking 'oh lets use the picture of Holly cos shes left and itll annoy her' The graphics department probably have a folder for that awards ceremony, and maybe the magazine references it. It also may simply be filed under a folder for photos that depict success, or 'lady smiling'

Our work has hundreds of folders titled, 'winter' or 'awards' or 'lighting' etc the graphics designers dont know anyone in them and wouldnt know peoples work history. The only time I know that someone was meticulously scrubbed from files was someone who was subsequently jailed...

James1968

If the photo was taken by your previous employers whilst you were accepting the award at an awards ceremony, all you can do is request that they cease using your image.

However, if your former employer asked you to pose for the photo, they must ask your permission to use it for publicity purposes. Failure to do this leaves them open to a claim for a fee for the use of the photo.

Speaking as a semi-pro photographer, even 'taken in the street' images may require release forms to be signed if the image is to be used for promotional purposes and any of the people in the image can be recognised.

Undervalued

Holly_Kipper wrote: »

I actually left the job due to been forced to resign which now I actually believe is due to them wanting to get away with redundancy pay.
I am just shocked that they have the cheek to use a photo on myself.
The photo is from two years ago where I won an award for fundraising.
Yes okay many thanks for your advice I think I will go ahead and write to the company stating I do not wish to be associated with them and for them not publish anything again, I will also put into writing again for them to take me off the alarm system which I still continue to have calls for!

Happy New Year All

Maybe so but, legally, you did resign so unless you were to win a claim for constructive unfair dismissal that is irrelevant to this issue.

Such claims have a less than 3% chance of succeeding and would in any case need to be filed within 3 months of leaving having previously exhausted all internal procedures.

By all means write to them and tell the, politely, that you would prefer them not to use your photograph in the future. That is far more likely to be successful than making orders or demands that you may well struggle to enforce if they decide to be difficult!

Undervalued

James1968 wrote: »

If the photo was taken by your previous employers whilst you were accepting the award at an awards ceremony, all you can do is request that they cease using your image.

However, if your former employer asked you to pose for the photo, they must ask your permission to use it for publicity purposes. Failure to do this leaves them open to a claim for a fee for the use of the photo.

Speaking as a semi-pro photographer, even 'taken in the street' images may require release forms to be signed if the image is to be used for promotional purposes and any of the people in the image can be recognised.

I agree with your second paragraph.

Regarding the third it is a bit more complex than that. Generally speaking if the person was just going about their business when the photo was taken no release is required. If however the photographer interrupted them or perhaps asked them to pause or walk in a slightly different direction etc then, arguably, they have become a model and a release is needed. If the person is well known, rather than somebody who would only be recognised by friends and family, then it gets more complex these days.....