Most company owners, managers, and staff members would likely agree that employee monitoring software seems overly invasive if you spoke with them last year. But this industry is booming now that COVID-19 forced us to reconsider our policies regarding work from home.
It’s a fact that many managers now know their staff can work from anywhere and still finish their assignments. Nevertheless, the majority of these businesses lack remote work experience. What steps does a business take to monitor employee attendance every day and maintain high productivity?
Even though monitoring systems have shown to benefit businesses in a variety of ways, there are still moral questions they bring up. So let’s examine what constitutes morality and immorality in the monitoring industry.
1. Surveilling workers covertly
Employee monitoring without knowledge or consent is the most common monitoring practice that is deemed unethical and, in most cases, even illegal. When employers wish to expose employees who they believe are engaging in unethical behavior, they are permitted to use this tactic. But, there could be dire repercussions for businesses that merely wish to monitor staff members covertly.
Make sure your staff members are aware of employee monitoring software like Controlio at all times to prevent this. If at all feasible, draft a monitoring policy and consent forms that spell out exactly what you’ll be looking for, what data you’ll be gathering, how you’ll store it, and who will be able to access it.
2. Keeping an eye on workers after hours
After-hours monitoring has become a significant challenge in the present remote working environment. It’s fairly uncommon for employees to use their corporate laptops for personal affairs when they’re on a break or once their shift is done. If you’re using the monitoring software during certain hours, you could potentially collect sensitive personal data that could legally implicate you.
To prevent the issue, either restrict the utilization of company-owned computers for personal use, or allow employees to switch off their trackers after the shift is done or while they’re on a break. This will also make your employees calmer about the monitoring as they’ll have full control over the software and what it monitors.
3. Collecting personal data through employee monitoring software
Most employee monitoring software such as Controlio comes equipped with a screenshot feature, while some of the more intrusive ones will even allow you to record screens or keystrokes on your employees’ computers. Even though screenshots serve as proof of work, taking them at a wrong time (when your employees are browsing social media, their bank accounts, etc.) means you would be collecting personal data you don’t want to have.
If you do want to use screenshots, find a software that will allow you to limit screenshots only to work-related apps and websites. The same goes for all other intrusive features. However, the ideal would be to not utilize any of them, since they are optional with most software suppliers.
4. Not leveraging the acquired data for company improvement
One shall need to have a proper plan at one’s beck and call if one really wants to get the best out of it while keeping employees on board. Figure out why you genuinely want to monitor your staff, what data you need, and put up some targets. For example, if you’re utilizing an employee monitoring program to boost the productivity of your teams, make sure you’re tracking how much daily productive time they have (most software solutions calculate this automatically). Once you have that knowledge, see what causes the productivity to go down. Is it the fact that too much time is spent in meetings? Are your employees spending more time than necessary on social media? Pinpoint the factors that generate bottlenecks and handle them by talking to your employees and setting up the plan to reduce these distractions.
Last Remark
There are ethical reasons for employee surveillance, despite what some may say. It is all up to you, though. Consider how you would feel if someone were to observe your everyday activities if you truly want to ensure that you are keeping an ethical eye on your employees. In addition, if you adhere to these four basic guidelines, you won’t encounter any ethical dilemmas.