Computer Monitoring

3 Pages 831 Words

In today’s U.S. firms, three quarters (77.7%) of employees are monitored by on site surveillances by their employers. It is a way of keeping the company informed of its employees’ activities at work. New technologies make it possible for employers to monitor many aspects of their employees’ jobs. Unless a company policy specifically states otherwise, employers may listen, watch and read most of their employees’ workplace communications through telephones, computer terminals, electronic and voice mail systems, and Internet connections products.
One way of monitoring employees is through the telephone. Employers may monitor calls with employees and customers for quality assurance purposes. In some states, employers are required by law to inform employees that their conversations are being recorded or monitored. This can be done by putting a beep tone on the line or playing a recorded message that would indicate that their conversations are being monitored. Under Federal Law, employers are not allowed to monitor employees’ personal calls. Employers can also obtain a record of your phone calls through a device called a pen register which allows them to see a list of phone numbers dialed by your extension and the length of each call you make.
Another way of monitoring employees is through computer terminals. Your terminal may be the employer’s window into your workplace. There are several types of computer monitoring. One common type of computer monitoring is through the use of computer software that enables them to see what is on the employees’ screen. Employers can also see what is stored in the employees’ terminal and hard disks. Another method involves word-processing and data entry jobs that can be monitored by their keystroke. This can indicate to managers if their employers are above or below the standard number of keystrokes expected. Another computer monitoring technique allows the employers to keep...