Mobile devices and inexpensive monitoring software now enable companies to know where employees are, eavesdrop on their phone calls, and do other things such as know whether or not a driver is wearing his/her seatbelt.  More than 40 percent of businesses that send employees out on service calls today track the location and movement of those employees by their company-owned/provided hand-held devices or vehicles.  Some employees complain that various monitoring practices are an invasion of privacy, but businesses contend that such measures improve workplace safety and productivity, while also reducing theft, protect against discrimination.  Business say surveillance and monitoring are needed to prevent “goofing off.”  Monitoring is often used by businesses to justify various disciplinary actions, as well as to better reward exemplary work.  Currently, no federal laws prevent businesses from using GPS devices to monitor employees, nor do businesses have to disclose to employees whether they are using such techniques.  In fact in the USA, only two states currently require businesses to tell employees if their electronic communications, including emails, instant messages, texts, photos, and website visited, are being monitored; the two states are Delaware and Connecticut.  MIS tracking technology was pioneered a decade ago in the trucking industry and even before that with video cameras in stores.  However, advanced MIS tracking technology today has permeated many industries and is utilized by thousands of businesses ranging from landscaping firms to restaurants – and in many of the businesses employees do not realize that their actions, location, and habits are being monitored whenever they are on the job.

Source:  Spencer Ante and Lauren Weber, “Memo to Workers:  The Boss is Watching,”  Wall Street Journal, October 28, 2013, p. B1, B6.