This week IKEA in Peterborough has come under fire for its overzealous, and frankly, quite disarming video surveillance cameras that were installed above toilets and locker rooms at a distribution centre (now removed). The furniture giant said the CCTV had been placed in the void above the ceilings of these areas at the depot in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, in 2015.  Current and former staff are said to be livid – as well as concerned as to the potential for a gross privacy breach depending on what is captured on the footage.

Workers are no doubt aware that employers are monitoring or have the potential to review their actions while they’re on the job. There are almost countless ways to track an employee’s activities and behaviours. Open-office configurations “promote transparency.” Key cards, video cameras and software are used to monitor workers’ every movement, as well as their every keystroke.  Any time an employee is on the phone, using company email or using the internet, driving in a GPS tracked vehicle, there is regularly some sort of tracking, which the employer could be watching.

Employee Handbooks and recorded phone messages typically are relied on to give a good indication of the level of monitoring within that given organisation, but often these are sweeping statements, and it can be hard for staff to know the level  and extent of this monitoring and how it might infringe on their privacy.

The lengths that a lot of businesses go to in order to monitor their employees’ activity can be quite staggering. Which leads us to following question….

Just how much employee monitoring is too much?

On the one hand, employers’ have entirely legitimate reasons to protect their interests by setting specific boundaries and limitations for their workers: security concerns, leaking of confidential information, and liability for actions or comments of employees, to name a few. On the other hand, employees have the right not to feel spied on while at their workplace, and  any form of activity tracking should be implemented within reason, and comply with data protection and privacy laws, as well as yes – shear common decency! A large number of your staff may feel uncomfortable about being tracked should you decide to implement a monitoring system, and rightfully so.

In terms of video surveillance – as long as it’s conducted in common areas and entrances, it typically does not need to be disclosed nor agreed to by your staff.  But outside of that, it should be made very clear if monitoring or surveillance is in place.  Naughty-naughty, IKEA!

Sure, monitoring employees benefits companies in lots of ways. But, what about privacy? Just because we work for a company, I’m sure the majority of us would agree that they don’t feel they should have the right to watch our every movement.

What these companies gain in productivity might be lost in engagement and trust, especially if the business isn’t transparent about how they’re monitoring workers. For workers, however, the best advice remains to assume that employers can see everything you do at work. Don’t do or say anything that you wouldn’t do or say in front of your boss.

Below are some tips as to what you can do to take a more balanced approach to your monitoring.

Tips for a balanced approach

1.       Minimise the impact

To start, businesses should re-evaluate their current or planned monitoring methods, and consider whether there are less intrusive ways of achieving the same goals. Do you really need to control all of their internet traffic, or would a random check every other week be enough? Do you really need video surveillance in staff washrooms IKEA?!

2.       Prioritise transparency

Practice shows that employees are a lot more likely to understand and agree to new policies if they’ve been informed about them upfront. So, make sure you’re transparent and forthcoming about the importance of monitoring and the goals you are hoping to accomplish with it.  Sneaking your monitoring practices into an infrequently read employee handbook without mention will only breed distrust.

3.       Be compliant

Even though employers have a significant amount of legal leeway regarding employee monitoring, there are several important laws and regulations that they should absolutely follow.  These include, but are not limited to, the Data Protection Act (DPA) 2018, and the Employment Practices Data Protection Code (EPDPC) 2011. According to the Data Protection Act, these six principles should at least be followed if employers wish to monitor their employees:

  • Monitoring must be lawful, fair, and transparent.
  • The purpose of the monitoring must be specified, explicit, and legitimate.
  • If employee monitoring involves collecting or using personal information, the data collected must be adequate, relevant, and not excessive.
  • The personal data must be accurate and kept up to date.
  • If personal data is collected, it shouldn’t be kept for any longer than is necessary.
  • Information gathered through monitoring should be kept secure.
4.       Establish a policy

If you’re convinced that having a monitoring system is absolutely necessary for your business, it would be good idea to establish a clear and comprehensive policy. The policy should contain a detailed description of your monitoring practices. On top of that, considering adding a respective clause to your employment contracts, or have a dedicated consent form, where employees can explicitly agree to your tracking measures.

Concluding Statement

Businesses must understand that employees have a right to a certain degree of privacy at work. It is best to strike a balance between their business interests and employee’s expectations of privacy. Most importantly, the monitoring process should be fair and reasonable.  I think we can all agree that IKEA overstepped the privacy bar in installing covert survelliance in toilets, even if its legitimate aim was to reduce theft, the approach seems disproportionate to the means and risk.

 

 

 

Hannah Powell