(Work) Employee Communication and Monitoring
According to Miller and Hollowell (2016), “the emergence of Facebook and other social networking sites has created a number of legal and ethical issues for businesses” (p. 98). In the recent past, there have been instances of people being fired because of posts or utterances made on their social media accounts. This is more so the case given that the line between professional life and personal life is increasingly being blurred, thanks to the prevalence of social media. One such instance involved Ashley Payne.
Summary of the Case
Payne, a high school teacher, was forced to resign from her teaching position after a parent complained of a picture she had posted in her Facebook account in 2009 holding alcoholic drinks in both of her hands. The school administration was also of the opinion that a B-word she had used in her page was offensive and unprofessional. The complaint made to the school administration came from a single parent. It is also important to note that at the time Payne made the said posts, her Facebook privacy settings were set to ‘high’, which effectively means that any picture posted could only be viewed by those who were her pals on the said social media platform....
In particular, employees can feel as though they have a lack of privacy and that they are constantly being micro-managed. Studies have shown that workers who are monitored through outlets such as call centres have elevated levels of depression and anxiety (Holman, 2002). As the worker loses their autonomy, it is also common for them to lose a substantial degree of intrinsic motivation. Another negative consequence of employee monitoring is
Employee Privacy Torts Issues relating to employee privacy have been at the forefront of businesses for many years. This has been fuelled by the dynamic workplace which changes constantly and also by employees and employers being more litigation-conscious. Technology has also spurred on employee privacy issues with e-mail and the internet being related to heightened concerns about vulnerability of employers to litigation. Many employers have thus exacerbated their concerns relating to
Employee Privacy Torts History of Employee Privacy Changing Trends of Employee Privacy Impact of Innovative Technology on Employee Privacy Role of Social Media towards Employee Privacy Impact of Changing Community/Society on Employee Privacy Adaptation to the new Environment pertaining to Employee Privacy Employee Monitoring and Surveillance Laws and Employer Policies for Text Messaging and Social Media Electronic Communication Privacy Act Monitoring of Employee Conversations over Telephone & Email Recommendations for creating Effective Policies Future Implications of Employee Privacy As years have passed and
Employee E-Mail and Internet Privacy Policies The increased usage of the Internet and e-mail has changed the way companies do business. Nearly instantaneous communication can take place globally. Information on a countless number of topics can now be accessed from anywhere around the world. These technological developments have not only helped employees increase their efficiencies, but also has given them a new means of distraction from their duties. For this reason,
This could be construed as a part of the atmosphere that exists in the work place. At which point, entity / individual can sue the employer for violating the law, by not properly monitoring their employees' email and internet activities. ("Workplace Privacy and Employee Monitoring" 2010) However, a larger concern that employers have is any email sent to someone by an employee can become a problem for them in the
Dennis should have first confronted Zack about the issue to find out what was going on. If he could not get any satisfaction there then taking the issue to Tim would have been appropriate. Another solution that could have taken place would be for Dennis to report the issue to an ethics hotline in order to have it investigated by neutral parties. This of course could only happen if
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now