Want to snoop on your remote workers? Good news, it’s perfectly legal – but your employees won’t like you
From the occasional mouse wiggle to Frankenstein inventions involving Vienna sausages and a spinning fan, employee monitoring is something we’ve all had to deal with in this post-COVID era.
But it’s about to get a lot harder, now that the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has released guidance on workplace monitoring.
It’s no longer enough to keep that little circle green as ‘working’, because you may have to calm down a whole host of invasive software that tracks everything from keystrokes to webcam images.
Big Brother looking through the lens
If you’ve ever felt like you’re being watched in your own home, you may be among the one in five (19%) of people who think their employer has spied on their work, according to research. research on behalf of the ICO.
The guidelines provide guidance on how activities can be monitored lawfully and fairly, including providing reasons for, how and why employees will be monitored. Fortunately for us, organizations wishing to implement these practices will need to be fully transparent about their methods, obtain consent or have a legal obligation, and conduct a data protection impact assessment if there is any possibility that this form of surveillance could breach any legislation . workers’ rights.
And after all that, if you feel like someone is constantly breathing down your neck, you can request access to all the personal information your employer has collected through a Subject Access Request (SAR).
If you want to implement workplace monitoring in your organization – warning – only 19% of people would feel comfortable taking a new job if they knew they would be monitored, and 70% of current employees would find it intrusive if monitoring had to be implemented.
“We urge all organizations to consider both their legal obligations and the rights of their employees before conducting any surveillance.” said Deputy Commissioner Emily Keaney: “While data protection legislation does not prevent surveillance, our guidance is clear that this must be necessary, proportionate and respect employees’ rights. We take action if we suspect that people’s privacy is being threatened.”