Public Employee Press

Workplace surveillance
Invasion of the body snoopers

By GREGORY N. HEIRES

Computer software and high-tech devices are the boss’s weapons of choice in the 21st century workplace.

Nowadays, you should just assume Big Brother is watching you. And keep in mind that the data your boss gathers can ultimately be used to fire or discipline you.

“In the past 15 years we have seen an absolute proliferation of technology in the workplace and an equally large explosion of electronic monitoring,” said Jeremy Gruber, legal director of the National Workrights Institution in Princeton, N.J. “Today, virtually all employers use some kind of electronic monitoring of their employees.”

State legislatures and the U.S. Congress have quietly surrendered to the interests of business by failing to raise warning flags, investigate abuses and enact legislation to protect worker and privacy rights in recent years, Gruber said.

DC 37 General Counsel Eddie M. Demmings said electronic surveillance raises serious concerns about members’ rights and protections on the job. Both Demmings and Gruber say the growing surveillance in the United States points to the need for unions with the strength to negotiate safeguards for employees.

But for Demmings, management’s use of technology as a weapon against workers is particularly disturbing. “Sure employers say they are usingtechnology to improve productivity. But don’t be fooled by that rhetoric. For the boss, technology isn’t neutral; it’s a tool to keep an eye on you and to discipline you.”

Today, employers are armed to the teeth with high-tech surveillance and biometric weapons. Video cameras in bathrooms and locker rooms, phone taps and e-mail monitoring are just the start. Satellite technology pinpoints the whereabouts of workers and vehicles, and electronic badges track the movement of nurses in hospitals. Thanks to keyboard-tracking programs, the boss knows if you use your computer for personal correspondence and where you go on the Internet. Nationwide, employers are increasingly using voice recognition software and eyeball (iris) scanning to identify workers.

Here in New York, in February, Local 375 received worldwide media attention as it convinced the Dept. of Design and Construction to back away from using palm scanners for timekeeping. Employees felt the scanning violated their privacy.

Although none of the more intrusive high-tech snoopware has become a problem for DC 37 members, Local 375 1st Vice President Jon Forster says he’s worried that “Local 375’s fight against palm scanners is only the tip of the iceberg, a sad sign that unless we fight it, electronic surveillance will become more common in our workplaces and daily lives.”