On 2 October 2020, H&M received a fine of EUR35 million for monitoring and recording "extensive details" about hundreds of its employees in Nuremburg, in breach of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
“Since at least 2014, parts of the workforce have been subject to extensive recording of details about their private lives,” HmbBfDI said in a press release. “Corresponding notes were permanently stored on a network drive. After absences such as vacations and sick leave – even short absences – the supervising team leaders conducted so-called Welcome Back Talks with their employees.”