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EMPLOYEE MONITORING.
Term Paper ID:28276
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Essay Subject:
Examines reasons for & against surveillance. Types of monitoring; legal ramifications; moral & ethical issues. Table of Contents.... More...
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10 Pages / 2250 Words
6 sources, 14 Citations,
MLA Format
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Paper Abstract:
Examines reasons for & against surveillance. Types of monitoring; legal ramifications; moral & ethical issues. Table of Contents.
Paper Introduction:
I. Introduction
II. Reasons for Employee Monitoring
A. Improve Employee Productivity
B. Decrease Asset Cost
Ensure that software is used by the right people
C. Decrease Theft from Employer, Other Employees
D. Protect Against Workplace Violence
E. Protect Company's Interests
Raytheon employees posting defamatory data on Net
Disgruntled employees defaming company on Net
III. Reasons Against Employee Monitoring
A. Privacy Issues
B. Decreased Employee Morale
IV. Types of Monitoring
Text of the Paper:
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For example, acompany may find that although it has purchased software licenses forMicrosoft Access, only a few of the people who have the licenses actuallyuse the software, and of those, perhaps another program on their computer(such as Microsoft Excel) would prove sufficient to their needs. Employers are also finding that they are having to take steps toprotect their employees against workplace violence. Moral/Ethical Considerations The greater consideration for many employers and employees alike arethe moral and ethical considerations which accompany a decision to "spy" onemployees. Increasingly common is the use of computer-based monitoring inthe workplace. Protect Against Workplace Violence E. Many employees have assumed that their e-mail was personalin much the same way that personal mail sent through the United PostalService is personal and protected (employers can eavesdrop on employeephone calls, and may monitor the phone numbers that are being dialed), butcourts have ruled otherwise (Cook 43). Eavesdropping C. In this situation, the ethical argument can be made that thepolicy (and the consequences of violating the policy) should be the samefor all employees regardless of their position in the organization. Types of Monitoring There are various types of electronic monitoring which can be used ata company. Protect Company's Interests Raytheon employees posting defamatory data on Net Disgruntled employees defaming company on Net III. Telephone Monitoring 1. Video surveillance cameras have longbeen installed in banks and convenience stores where their primary purposeis to provide documentation in case of criminal acts by outsiders.However, such cameras can also be used to monitor the actions of individualemployees (one security camera documenting a robbery also showed a bankteller short changing customers during the time leading up to the robbery)and to document when employees from one part of a building might be"wandering"--either on purpose or by accident, in a part of the buildingwhere they do not belong (Mishra & Crampton 6). The most comprehensive of this type of monitoring trackseach and every keystroke and mouse click that a user inputs from theirpersonal computer or workstation. Decrease Theft from Employer, Other Employees D. One of the most controversial, and invasive, methods of computermonitoring is reading the e-mail which comes into and which leaves anorganization. Employers who use thisrationale argue that electronic monitoring is merely the next step frommonitoring employees' at their desks visually (determining whether they arereading the newspaper, doing crossword puzzles, or otherwise engaging inbehaviors which are not productive). In addition, this type of search is notnecessarily helpful because it was difficult to judge the quality of thevarious sites in terms of their objectivity, or even their accuracy. Monitoring software use 4. Decrease Asset Cost Ensure that software is used by the right people C. However, critics of this technique arguethat employers should base their decisions on employee performance, notmonitoring, and that reading an employee's e-mail is tantamount tolistening to an employee's phone conversations despite the good intentionof the employer. In one particularly well-publicized situation,Raytheon Company subpoenaed a number of Internet service providers in aneffort to identify employees who posted proprietary information in publicchat areas on the Internet. "The 'snoopervision' debate." Supervision (Aug 1999): 3-5.Rice, Valerie. Moral/Ethical Considerations VII. Employees are reluctant to give up software, or may anticipate that theywill have a need for a particular piece of software that they actually donot need. In these cases, the Internet serviceproviders have maintained that they are required to supply suchinformation, and that individuals who engage in unlawful conduct(defamatory speech as opposed to merely expressing an opinion) do so attheir own risk and without protection from possible tort action (Deck 6). Video surveillance is not new to the workplace, and has beencommonplace in a variety of settings. Reasons for Employee Monitoring A. InfoTrac was then used to try to search out articles about thesubject. Employers are advised to adopt both aprivacy policy and a telephone/e-mail policy prior to taking these steps,and to ensure that everyone in the organization understands these policies. search engine and the keywords "employee privacy." This yieldednumerous sites which addressed a variety of issues, including employeerights and techniques for both employees (how to protect oneself againstbeing spied on) and employers (how to spy on employees). Game sites, adult sites and similar sites (sometimes includingauction sites) can all be blocked without knowing whether employees areactually visiting those sites. This is particularly true sincemost employees consider that their performance should be the overridingstandard against which they are judged, and if they write personal e-mailor make personal phone calls, but they still get their job done (or staylate on those occasions when they have spent time on personal business),the personal business they conduct on so-called company time should simplybe a non-issue. Employer liability for violence in the workplace has increased inrecent years, as well. One of the primary areas ofconcern is that software is being used effectively, but also that softwareis used by the right people within the organization. In other situations, installing cameras or other monitoringtechnology has resulted in a decrease in employee theft, or an increase inproductivity (as when a notice that e-mail is being monitored results in asharp decline in the number of e-mail messages being sent from the company,suggesting that personal e-mail messages have sharply declined) (Mishra &Crampton 3). Telephone monitoring is also becoming increasingly common.Telemarketers and customer support personnel are often well aware thattheir phone calls may be monitored, and those who call these individualsare used to the warning that their conversation may be monitored in orderto ensure better customer service. In addition, state statutes can have a significant impact onthe type of information which can be obtained by employers prior to anapplicant's hiring (Green 133). Monitoring keystrokes 2. Conclusion VIII.Research Log IX. Thus it was frustrating to generate hundreds of "hits" andwonder if the "best" site would be buried so deeply in the list that itwould be impossible to get to. Thisresearch considers employee monitoring, particularly electronic monitoring,and its ramifications in the workplace. Some employers use computer monitoring to track whether employees areusing the various software programs that are installed on their personalcomputers and workstations. However, some softwareprograms may be used by only a few people and companies are eager to trackdown unused software so that they can reduce their MIS costs in the future. Because of the potential liability associated with employers withregard to workplace violence, employers are increasingly motivated to findout as much as possible about employees prior to hiring them as well asduring their tenure with a particular organization. If theymake personal phone calls or send personal e-mail, such actions can helpthe employees maintain a high level of morale resulting in betterperformance throughout the rest of the day. Types of Monitoring A. Some critics of monitoringnote that such monitoring tends to take place at the lowest levels of theorganization, and that management is typically excluded from themonitoring. Numerous companieshave found that installing cameras (even fake cameras) pointed atrefrigerators in lunchrooms can greatly decrease the number of employeelunch thefts. At one time, employer liability was limited to actsthat occurred within the course and scope of employment. Reasons Against Employee Monitoring Despite the strong reasons that employers have provided in favor ofemployee monitoring, privacy advocates argue that monitoring violates therights of employees to privacy, and that the right to privacy extends evento the workplace. By monitoring the software that an employee actually uses, andthe ways in which the employee uses it, companies hope to be able to reducetheir long-term costs (Rice 83). Keywords for this searchincluded "employee privacy," "employee surveillance" and "corporatespying." By using the Advanced Search function in InfoTrac, and byfocusing on the InfoTrac Business Database, it was possible to generate alist of articles which were particularly well suited to the topic. Video Surveillance V. Legal Ramifications Legally, the courts have held that employers have the right to monitoremployees' actions, including eavesdropping on phone calls, reading e-mailand putting up video cameras. However, such monitoring can also beused to track whether personal phone calls are being made, and whether theemployee is offering defamatory or even simple negative information aboutthe company or its products (Deck 6). "Walking the Line Between Violence Prevention and Employee Privacy." HRMagazine (Oct 15, 1999): 132-133.Mishra, Jitendra and Suzanne Crampton. Reasons Against Employee Monitoring A. "Big Brother is Watching." PC Week (Sep 13, 1999): 83. Research Log Research for this topic began by searching the Internet using theYahoo! Privacy Issues B. Some companies have taken pre-emptive steps with regard to Web surfingand simply blocked employees from going to sites based on certainparameters. The Fair CreditReporting Act was recently amended to place greater restrictions on theability of employers to obtain investigative consumer reports on employeesand applicants (some employers rely on these reports to provide informationabout employees who may be having financial troubles and who thus may belikely to engage in theft or embezzlement, or other types of illegalbehavior). The greater argument against employee monitoring is that it can have adeleterious effect on employee morale. Conclusion Employee monitoring is an issue which is likely to increase, notdecrease, in importance as additional tools become available to employers.It will be up to each employer to determine whether monitoring makes sensein their environment, and if so, to what level and for what purpose. When Owens & Minor, a distributioncompany, implemented a keystroke monitoring system from Keylime Software,it opted to use a keystroke monitoring system which permits it to reviewhow employees are using their personal computers and the various softwareprograms available to them. "Legal Thumbs-Up for Raytheon Employee Suit." Computerworld (Apr 12, 1999): 6.Green, Ronald M. Employers who are seeking to implement a monitoringprogram need to put their policies in writing and inform all employees ofthe policies. Surveillance, particularly video surveillance, can also be justifiedby employers who argue that the mere presence of video cameras can preventtheft both from the company and from other employees. Raytheon filed suit in order to learn theidentity of 21 "John Does" from their Internet service providers, andPhoenix International also sought to learn the identities of chat roomparticipants that the company claimed caused the stock price to fall whenthey posted defamatory information. Employers can also monitor the Web sites that employees are visiting.Increasingly, Internet sites are making this easier to do since they ofteninstall "cookies" on the computers which access individual sites, ormaintain a history file. These employees (and their advocates) suggest thatemployers are better off seeking to monitor performance rather thankeystrokes, and results rather than phone calls (Ramsey 4). Additional searches were done using "employee surveillance,""corporate spying" and "employee privacy." However, this was a frustratingway to resources because there are many (thousands) of search resultsreturned with no way to sort the results in terms of how relevant they areto the topic. In these situations, thetheory is that the employer knew, or should have known, that there was apropensity for violence (Green 132). The idea behind using published sources is that one can gauge theaccuracy of these sources more readily than Internet sites which mightactively seek to conceal their true agendas. Those who have particularly harsh or strict guidelinesshould make all job applicants aware of the guidelines as well since itwill affect their decision whether or not to take the job. Works Cited Introduction When George Orwell wrote about a giant screen in each person's homethat could monitor their every movement and activity, he equated BigBrother with the government. When companies seek to justify employee monitoring, they sometimescite the fact that by monitoring employees, they can determine whetherassets are being allocated appropriately. Decreased Employee Morale IV. Ifcompanies do decide to monitor their employees, they need to work inconjunction with legal advisors in order to devise a system and a policywhich protects them against potential liability in the future. Companies have long tracked long distance phone calls made byemployees on company phones in order to recover the costs from employees.For many companies, this is a simple way to let employees know that whilepersonal phone calls are permitted (even long distance ones), the employeeis expected to exercise reasonable judgment and to pay the company for thecall after it is completed. Introduction II. "Employee Monitoring." SAM Advanced Management Journal (Summer 1998): 4-14.Ramsey, Robert D. Works CitedCook, Julie. Or, thecompany might determine that employees are not as well-trained in the useof software as they could be, and that they need additional training inorder to make them more proficient. Legal Ramifications VI. As a result ofthis, companies are now regularly purchasing multiple licenses for theirnetworks and installing software enterprise-wide. Reading e-mail B. However, employees have increasingly fewer rights with regard to privacyin the workplace (including having personal lockers searched by theiremployer) (Ramsey 5). Tracking types of calls 2. Improve Employee Productivity B. Increasingly, however, it is not thegovernment but rather our employers that are spying on individuals, andthey are doing it often with the employees' permission and knowledge. Although employers are reluctant to admit the motive, they areincreasingly using monitoring techniques to pursue employees who might bedefaming the organization. As with other types of monitoring,employers protest that monitoring employee e-mail can help determine that aparticular employee might be planning to carry out violent acts within theworkplace, or may indicate that an employee is using the computer networkfor excessive personal tasks. Although long distance rates have declinedsignificantly in recent years, the ability to use an employer's commercialdiscount on long distance calls (even though the employee would have toreimburse the company later) was long considered one a perquisite ofworking for a large organization. Since most employees who access the Internet doso across a network, the electronic "footprint" that they leave behind canbe substantial and enough for an MIS professional to determine if employeesare visiting sites which are inappropriate, or if they are spending "toomuch" time surfing the Internet. In addition,companies are finding that workplace violence is particularly expensive:according to one study, more than 1.7 million work days are lost each yeardue to violence at the workplace, and more than $55 million in lost wages.Homicide is the leading cause of death for women in the workplace, and thesecond leading cause of death for men (industrial accidents are the primarycause of death for men in the workplace) (Green 132). Reasons for Employee Monitoring One of the key reasons given for monitoring employees electronicallyis to improve employee productivity (Rice 83). Many employers have concluded that performance is, indeed, theonly yardstick which matters in the workplace, and that employees arefundamentally interested in doing the best job they possibly can. As a whole, the industry has made stridestoward encouraging only licensed versions of software. In these situations, companies areable to decrease their asset cost and improve their competitive position byoffering appropriate and timely training to their employees. "Big Brother Goes to Work." OfficeSystems99 (Aug 1999): 43- 45.Deck, Stewart. However,judgments have resulted in companies being cited for negligent hiring andretention practices that place liability on employers when the violenceoccurs outside the normal scope of employment. It is also possible to determine ifemployees try to visit such sites in the event that they are blocked. In addition, by monitoring keystrokeson a personal computer or workstation, companies are able to spot trainingissues and can provide assistance to employees in order to help themimprove the ways in which they perform their tasks (Rice 83). I. Critics point out, however, that keystrokemonitoring can also help employers to "listen in" on an employees' wordprocessing program, and determine whether the employee is writing apersonal letter or a business proposal (Rice 83). Monitoring Web use 3. This violence hasincreased in recent years, and employers are increasingly considered to beliable for violence which occurs at their work sites. Computer-based 1.
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