06/02/08 Employee Monitoring

Okay, call me old fashioned, I've been called a lot worse, but I think your boss has every right to monitor you while you are at work. For some reason people have developed a false sense of privileged privacy at the work place. They feel that they should be able to send private e-mails, make personal phone calls, and surf the net for that next pair of Gucci shoes or pro golf clubs; all on company time, with company computers and telephones. Forgive me for saying this but if you are at work, shouldn't you be working! Of course you are allowed so many breaks per day, and this is the time for you to conduct personal business if necessary. But even then you shouldn't be using company equipment to do so. Companies that monitor their employees are not spying, they are doing quality control. Just as you expect to be paid for your work, they expect you to work for your pay. One way around this is to work for yourself, and then if you use company equipment for personal business you at least won't have to explain your actions to the boss.