...SB/DMK/14/0002 5. NATHANIEL DUAH ADJEI SB/DMK/14/0003 6. FREDRICK A. ASIEDU SB/DMK/14/0010 CASE STUDY MONITORING EMPLOYEES ON NETWORKS: UNETHICAL OR GOOD BUSINESS?. LAUDEN & LAUDEN (2014), PAGE 296-7 Question 1. Should managers monitor employee e-mail and internet usage? Why or Why not? Employee email and Internet usage monitoring in the workplace may put employers and employees in conflict because both sides are trying to protect personal interests. Employees want to maintain their personal privacy while employers want to ensure company resources are not misused. Employers monitor Internet use in the workplace to protect their companies from legal problems that could arise if employees use company computers for inappropriate or illegal online activities, such as racist, sexually explicit or other potentially offensive materials accessed or traded by their employees which could result in adverse publicity. They are also concerned about a decline in productivity as some workers use the Internet to handle personal activities such as checking personal email, responding to instant messages or sneaking in a brief YouTube video which creates series of non-stop interruptions that divert employees’ attention from the job tasks they are supposed to be performing. More over Strict monitoring allows employers to spot potential problems early, get the information offline as quickly as possible and discipline the employees involved...
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..."Should employers be allowed to monitor personal communication of its employees?" Ellen Berkeley, Amy Davis, Shawn Molloy, Deborah O’Leary, Karey Raubenheimer BCOM 275 October 31, 2011 Professor Tom Melpolder Although organizations have monitored employees for centuries, a number of developments have greatly expanded the amount and scope of employee monitoring. For example, recent technological advances have dramatically altered the nature of work, the working environment, and employee–employer relationships. As a result, information technology has emerged as an integral part of today’s organizational infrastructure. These new technologies have the potential to improve worker efficiency and effectiveness. However, there are risks associated with any new technology including the potential for employee abuse resulting in negative consequences (Alder, Kuenzi & Schminke, 2008). Private communication such as e-mails and social media in the workplace has emerged as one of the stickiest legal issues of the electronic age” (Cappel, 1995). The debate is divided. One side believes that employers should not have full control over its employee’s personal communication. Their view is that employees should have the ability to communicate with friends and family while on breaks, as long as productivity isn’t affected. Further, they believe that employees have a privacy right and should be allowed to communicate while at work without being monitored...
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...Ethical and Legal Issues Concerning At-will Employment Jasmine Mills Park University Abstract As years pass by, every sphere of life is taking a new dimension; for instance, advancing technology. This has resulted in some ethical issues in workplaces such as cyberloafing, privacy, information technology usage, employee monitoring. Also, legal issues in workplaces such as lawsuits have emerged. Both employers and employees are worried about the ethical consequences resulting from the ethical issues While bosses use surveillance devices to keep track of their workers' activities and output, these workers feel that excessive monitoring is an attack on their confidentiality and privacy. The strategy of checking workers on a timely basis is contributed by the fact that bosses have rights over everything in the “at-will employment environment.” Additionally, this paper provides a proposal for reducing the ethical and legal issues. The paper also encourages organizations to generate and efficiently communicate ethical standards for workers in their companies. It also includes real examples of workers' perceptions as well as an emotional state from the surveys based on ethical and legal issues raised regarding the topic of study. Keywords: At-will employment, employee monitoring, Ethical and legal issues. Introduction At- will means employment can be terminated at any time, for any reason or no reason without facing legal action. Likewise, an employee can quit a job with or...
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...quantifiable, and evaluatable. Representing an organization’s loss due theft of property, deliberate employee misconduct, or inadvertent employee waste, workplace deviance stemmed from generally overt practices that could be weighted for their significance and addressed accordingly. Although this valuation may often be subjective, it could still be made tangible to a manager in ways that suited their (and their organization’s) ethical norm. In today’s workplace, it is not easy to run a successful and profitable company and maintain ethical behavior at all times. There are too many variables involved in running a business that it can sometimes be tough to determine between right and wrong. We will discuss some of the most common and potentially troubling changes in technology that have resulted in electronic surveillance, email monitoring, restricting access to programs and or websites, and social media trafficking. Due to technological advances, workplace deviance is becoming more and more of a concern for today’s employers. In years past, employers did encounter workplace deviance, but it was of a lesser degree. Chuck Williams, author of our management book, describes workplace deviance as, “unethical behavior that violates organizational norms about right and wrong.” Workplace deviance can have both tangible and intangible effects on a company’s assets. With the dawn of the Information Age has come a new and often perplexing set of challenges for the...
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...1.0 Statement of policy Scope and applicability This employee monitoring policy is to define standards for our property, including but not limited to e-mail, telephone (company cellular and landline), and the use of the Internet, that monitors use of technology within our company sectors. To ensure that our property, information, and network are used in a responsible and safe atmosphere, these standards have been designed and reviewed for employee implementation. This will support the integrity of our confidential information, intellectual property, and our employees against any breaches of sensitive and personal data. Our company’s internal Information Technology team(s) and Security Analyst(s) will monitor all employee usage of the aforementioned...
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...Monitoring Employees Private Social Sites Are Unethical Monitoring employee’s private social network sites is unethical. The Internet has become an excellent medium to connect with the outer World. People use it to connect with other people, sharing files, entertainment and lots of other activities that are useful and beneficial. Although the Internet can be useful, it’s usage can also present a problem for employers. Most companies fear leakage of confidential information and trade secrets through e-mail or blogs. A recent survey conducted by the American Management Association and the ePolicy Institute found that 14 percent of the employees polled admitted they had sent confidential or potentially embarrassing company e-mails to outsiders(pg ). As a result, some companies have monitored their employee’s social networking site; facebook for example. So, a distinction as to why companies monitor their employee’s social sites should be made, as well, as the employee’s rights to privacy. Why do companies monitor their employee’s social networking media? The reasons managers monitor social media was revealed in a new Deloitte survey. Many businesses want to be able to monitor their employees’ social networking activity on sites such as MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter. The main problem with this idea stems from employers wanting to monitor this activity on a subordinate’s off time. Business Week reported that companies want to make sure that their hard-earned...
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...Assignment One 1 Abstract Many employers recognize that need for a specific policies regarding surveillance or monitoring in the workplace. The primary purpose of such policies is to eliminate any expectation of privacy on the part of an employee utilizing company technologies or property for personal use. However, even when an employer has a policy, it is nonetheless common for employers to tolerate some degree of private usage by employees. This is one dilemma for employers and the main purpose for establishing a "zero tolerance". In any event, the employer's written policy and actual practices should clarify to employees specifically and inform third parties through implied or informed consent the expectations of the employer or business utilizing surveillance. Assignment One 2 Question One 1. Explain where an employee can reasonably expect to have privacy in the workplace. In the office workplace there are typically two types of workspaces, an open area, in which there are several desks and where conversations can be overhead, or an enclosed office, in which—when the door is closed—conversations cannot be heard and where one would expect virtually total privacy. Explain whether it makes a difference if an employee is in an open area or in an enclosed office. Surveillance is becoming commonplace in the work environment. Generally speaking, employers are permitted to monitor by surveillance "public" areas. When surveillance is hidden, however, and when the...
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...broad concept holding that individuals have equal treatment in all employment related actions” (p.56). Anti-harassment laws, equal pay laws, Civil Rights laws, etc. fall under the equal employment opportunity umbrella when it comes to employment within an agency. With all of the new age innovative technology, the use of mass media, and especially electronic mailing systems as a means of preferred communication; privacy has been a concerning issue for both employees and employers. Privacy laws in the workplace should be closely monitored in my current organization and state because of the amount of use of innovative technology. Most employers utilize and provide employees with access to interoffice electronic mailing systems, use of the World Wide Web, cellular devices, and also portable laptops in order to assist employees with their job duties; also at the expense of the organization. Some employees feel that their privacy is invaded when employers intercept emails and messages or when employers track internet usage; sometimes forgetting that they have consented for the organization to monitor equipment at first...
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...1. Summarize the benefits of using automated software tools to manage staff access to Internet content and e-mail. (10 marks) In today’s information age, using Internet at the workplace is essential for business. Having said this, statistics show that a majority of employees use the organisational resources for doing personal work such as social networking, email, online shopping, etc. Also a number of employees engage in activities that might cause problems for the organisation financially and legally. As a result more and more organisations have opted for automated software tools to manage staff access to Internet and e-mail. The advantages of such software tools are many, some of which have been outlined below. The use of automated software enables the management to keep a watchful eye on the employee activities, which would affect the productivity at work if the staffs indulge in personal activities online. It is important to emphasise that the manager or team leader cannot always observe his/her staffs and these software enables to record the activities of the employees at any time. Hence the management will be able to maximise productivity by managing employees’ web browsing habits. Unmanaged Internet access allows employees to download or share illegal or copyrighted content from peer-to-peer (P2P) networks. Also employees can take part in other activities such as downloading and viewing pornography, which might be illegal in some countries. All this means that...
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...XYZ Corporation’s business environment has changed dramatically over the years, especially the manner in which your company can be held liable, or accountable for the actions of your employees. Many small and big businesses like your company have numerous methods to protect themselves from lawsuits in the area of criminal activity and workplace torts. With proper training programs and a comprehensive set of electronic communications policies in place, companies such as yours can reduce many of the criminal and workplace torts that could occur within your workplace or business location and reduce the risk and occurrence of lawsuits and liabilities associated with the improper and illegal usage of the company resources such as Internet usage, email, and use of the company Network and computing systems. Many of the torts that typically occur outside of the workplace can easily occur within the workplace environment because of improper employee use, misuse, or illegal use of the Internet, social media, and email provided by companies such as XYZ Corp. A brief summary of the workplace torts that can create corporate liability and from which corporations and business owners must protect themselves from include but are not limited to: 1. Intentional torts (torts against a person): Assault, Battery, False Imprisonment, and Intentional infliction of emotional distress. 2. Property Torts such as Conversion and Copyright Infringement. 3. Dignitary torts activity that causes injury...
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...|12/16/2010 | Executive Summary According to a 2009 survey conducted by American Management Association (AMA), the top two reasons employers provided for monitoring their employees were performance evaluation and quality control. Workplace monitoring may sound wrong, but it provides many benefits to an organization and its staff members, such as lower operating costs and high production rates. However, in the process of monitoring employees, employees’ privacy rights are violated mainly through computer monitoring, telephone monitoring and background checks. Productivity is one of the main reasons cited by employers for introducing electronic surveillance and employee testing to the workplace. Employers believe that corporate survival demands continuous improvements in employee productivity. Errors, poor products, and slow service hurt business. Therefore, monitoring and testing to identify and correct these problems are considered to be sound management practices (Wright). However, the following will analyze privacy in the workplace from an ethical point of view using three workable theories: Kantianism, Act Utilitarianism, and Social Contract Theory. Privacy...
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...Internet Privacy Abstract As more and more people continue to use the Internet and disclose their personal information, privacy concerns are paramount. Marketing companies are fiercely competing for their share of the booming e-commerce industry estimated at 75 billion dollars in 2010. Government agencies after 9/11 are using personal communications such as e-mail and social networking sites to scrutinize and evaluate potential threats to the United States. Legislation including the Patriot Act has empowered a new generation of public officials with information gathering capabilities on demand. In some cases a court order is not needed to inspect all of a person’s electronic communications. Exploitation of highly sensitive personal information is a reality as companies routinely sell this information to third parties without an individual’s consent. Opting out is a disclaimer written into privacy statements on websites that are often buried in the fine print. Many Americans assume that privacy is included in the operating system they purchase. It is the collating of personal information from multiple data sources on the Internet that remains a key point of contention among those who view privacy as fundamental American right implicit in the Constitution. In this sense, privacy is deeply personal to the dignity and respect of our society. Yet, the relevance of security issues must seek a balance and address the notion of the possibility of abuse. One significant...
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...programme, please telephone 020 7210 3673 or email research@acas.org.uk Acas research publications can be found at www.acas.org.uk/researchpapers ISBN 978-1-908370-07-5 Workplaces and Social Networking The Implications for Employment Relations Andrea Broughton Tom Higgins Ben Hicks Annette Cox Prepared for Acas by: Institute for Employment Studies Sovereign House Church Street Brighton BN1 1UJ UK T: 01273 763400 F: 01273 763401 www.employment-studies.co.uk Copyright © 2009 Acas The Institute for Employment Studies The Institute for Employment Studies is an independent, apolitical, international centre of research and consultancy in public employment policy and organisational human resource issues. It works closely with employers in the manufacturing, service and public sectors, government departments, agencies, and professional and employee bodies. For 40 years the Institute has been a focus of knowledge and practical experience in employment and training policy, the operation of labour markets, and human resource planning and development. IES is a not-for-profit organisation which has over 70 multidisciplinary staff and international associates. IES expertise is available to all organisations through research, consultancy, publications and the Internet. Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank BT and HMRC as well as staff at Acas for taking the time to talk to us about their policies on social networking. Disclaimer This report contains the views...
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...The internet is the single most important technological advancement to take place during my lifetime and now is such an integral part of our daily lives we can not even imagine living without. The technology used to access the World Wide Web continually evolves and advances at unprecedented rates. The tools and gadgets we use to access the internet improve continuously and by the time we purchase the latest internet technology tool, a newer and faster version has already been developed and released on the market. The internet has become an integral part of the daily routines and operations of businesses worldwide. As businesses grow and expand based on the use of internet technologies, there are considerations that need to be made based on the infrastructure of the internet and employees use of computers. This paper will focus on those considerations of internet technologies and take a look at the vulnerabilities and lost production businesses are susceptible to with online operations and what is needed overcome and minimize these vulnerabilities and losses. Before the term internet existed a group of scientists and engineers for the U.S. Department of Defense transferred the first packets of data in the late 1960’s. Over the following two decades the speed and reliability increased as more universities and government researchers joined the network. In 1990, the U.S. Department of Defense ended its support of the internet when congress passed the Gore Bill handing control...
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...Total word count: 2983 Introduction The STAR organization has only done business locally in Leeds in the United Kingdom, and seeks to expand its business on a global scale. To make this happen, STAR would require developing a competitive strategy which in due course helps the organization in achieving a competitive advantage. This report will touch on how an information system can greatly benefit STAR in terms of global expansion and change the dynamics of running businesses efficiently, as well as the impact of having it. Without a doubt, any new implementations to any organization will have its advantages and disadvantages, but the latter can be kept to the minimum, or even eliminated, if appropriately dealt with. 1 – Potential of IT systems The Ansoff Growth Matrix is a marketing planning tool which aids a business in defining its product and market growth strategy. As shown below (Fig 1.1), market development is the name given to a growth strategy where the STAR organization seeks growth by targeting its existing products to new market segments (QuickMBA, undated). Fig 1.1 – Ansoff product/market growth matrix (taken from http://www.tutor2u.net/business/strategy/ansoff_matrix.htm) The major goal of market development is to attract a new customer segment, using a slightly different strategy, into consuming an existing product (Ansoff, 1984, p455). According to Riley (2012), various market development strategies include; * New distribution channels i.e. changing...
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