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There have been dramatic changes in employee privacy since I first wrote about this issue five years ago. Technology, of course, has driven many of the changes, not only on the user's side but on the side of employers who have new tools for monitoring employee behavior.
Here's some information from a recent article in HR Daily Advisor e-newsletter from BLR that gives employees fair warning on privacy issues:
"Employers want to be sure their employees are doing a good job, but employees don't want their every sneeze or trip to the water cooler logged. That's the essential conflict of workplace monitoring.
New technologies make it possible for employers to monitor many aspects of their employees' jobs, especially on telephones, computer terminals, through electronic and voice mail, and when employees are using the Internet. Such monitoring is virtually unregulated. Therefore, unless company policy specifically states otherwise (and even this is not assured), your employer may listen, watch and read most of your workplace communications.
Recent surveys have found that a majority of employers monitor their employees. They are motivated by concern over litigation and the increasing role that electronic evidence plays in lawsuits and government agency investigations.
A 2005 survey by the American Management Association found that three-fourths of employers monitor their employees' web site visits in order to prevent inappropriate surfing. And 65% use software to block connections to web sites deemed off limits for employees. About a third track keystrokes and time spent at the keyboard. Just over half of employers review and retain electronic mail messages.
Over 80% of employers disclose their monitoring practices to employees. And most employers have established policies governing Internet use, including e-mail use (84%) and personal Internet use (81%).
So, you can see that employee privacy continues to be a hot issue for both employees and employers as e-mail, blogs and the Internet give people access and venues for expression and communication that they didn't have before.
The questions we ask about this behavior, though, are the same we asked before:
- Does the activity impede an employee's ability to do their job?
- Is the employee on company time?
- Is the employee using company resources?
- Is the employee distracting other employees?
- Does the behavior damage the credibility/reputation of the employer?
There are no easy answers in the area of employee privacy. Each situation must be analyzed uniquely and evaluated thoroughly. Every employee must be treated fairly.
However, as an employer, never forget that you have the right to protect your organization and any employee who is affected by bad behavior. Don't fail to take the necessary steps to keep productivity high, employees motivated and your company protected from internal vulnerabilities.
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