Privacy is a major issue in this day and age. People are getting paranoid about government surveillance and the like. Their fears are not baseless since governments all over the world actually do spy on their citizens. But what about companies? Can they legally monitor their employees?
Productivity keeps decreasing as people are constantly getting addicted to technology. Just a simple review of the latest movie can lead you down a rabbit hole of various issues ranging from song choice to mental illness.
Recent surveys by staffing firms have found out that employees spend at least 56 minutes per day using their phones for personal business at work. That’s approximately one hour wasted daily!
Companies are aware of this trend and want some control over the situation. Most businesses are now looking into the ethical and legal issues regarding employee monitoring. Why employee monitoring you may ask? Well, it’s because it will likely increase daily productivity.
In this article, we’re going to discuss different ways to ethically and legally monitor employees.
Ethical and legal issues regarding employee monitoring
Before we talk about different ways to monitor employees, lets first go through the ethical and legal issues plaguing employee monitoring.
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Legally employers are allowed to track web surfing, emailing, and other activities through company devices. But should they do it? Different employees are going to react differently. Strict supervision can very easily to damage morale and overall performance of an employee. It’s like Big Brother looking at their every move. Some will definitely find the whole situation very restricting and stifling. Then there are privacy issues that could lead to discrimination lawsuits against companies.
If companies want to start monitoring their employees, they need to first realize the difference between monitoring and surveillance. There is no problem in trying to monitor events through company devices in order to ensure productivity and protect assets. But, surveillance is defined as tracking individual activities. This can make certain employees uncomfortable and may lead them to look for other opportunities.
Different ways to monitor employees
Now that we’ve established the importance of employee monitoring and discussed its ethical and legal implications, let’s look at some of the ways through which employee monitoring can be achieved.
Set Written Policies
Companies need to inform their employees about any major changes in policies. Before monitoring, employers need to write down their new policies. Explain these policies in a clear and concise manner so that misunderstandings can be avoided. Include them in a handbook or guide and make sure that every employee reads and signs it. Take immediate disciplinary action if an employee fails to follow guidelines.
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Also, make sure that there is no favouritism and policies are being implemented on all employees.
Installing monitoring tools
Modern problems require modern solutions. Monitoring tools are one such solution to decreasing productivity. Lots of well-established Employee time tracking software are currently in the market. Each offers different features and services.
Before buying a time-tracking app, make a list of requirements. Take some input from managers and supervisors as well. After the list is complete, start looking for an app. Buy the software that ticks all or most of your boxes.
Blocking Inappropriate Websites
There’s a lot of content out there on the web. However, most of it is quite useless in the grand scheme of things. It lets us pass the time but doesn’t add value to our daily lives.
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Many sites, like Facebook, tend to distract employees. Companies should block these unproductive websites. If employees frequently visit pages that are unrelated to work, remind them that they are on work hours.
Using video surveillance
Video cameras in workplaces can be very effective but companies need to be careful about their placements. It’s mainly used to discourage or detect theft. But, it can also be used to monitor employees and see if they’re actually working or not. However, if these videos are being misused, businesses can land into some trouble.
Check with your state laws and confirm to what extent is video surveillance legal. Never install cameras into places where a reasonable amount of privacy is expected. These places include restrooms, break rooms, and other such areas.
Also, companies should be open with their employees about video surveillance. If they don’t, an unproductive environment will be created where employees are constantly paranoid about their every move.
