Extensive and growing use of electronic performance monitoring in organizations has resulted in considerable debate. Advocates of electronic monitoring approach the debate in teleological terms arguing that monitoring benefits organizations, customers, and society. Its critics approach the issue in deontological terms countering that monitoring is dehumanizing, invades worker privacy, increases stress and worsens health, and decreases work-life quality. In contrast to this win-lose approach, this paper argues that an approach which emphasizes communication in the design and implementation of monitoring systems (...) offers a win-win solution that should satisfy both deontological and teleological ethicists. (shrink)

Employee monitoring has raised concerns from all areas of society – business organizations, employee interest groups, privacy advocates, civil libertarians, lawyers, professional ethicists, and every combination possible. Each advocate has its own rationale for or against employee monitoring whether it be economic, legal, or ethical. However, no matter what the form of reasoning, seven key arguments emerge from the pool of analysis. These arguments have been used equally from all sides of the debate. The purpose of this paper is to (...) examine the seven key arguments that have been made with respect to employee monitoring. None of these arguments is conclusive and each calls for managerial and moral consideration. We conclude that a more comprehensive inquiry with ethical concern at the center is necessary to make further progress on understanding the complexity of employee monitoring. The final section of this paper sketches out how such an inquiry would proceed. (shrink)

Almost exactly ten years ago, the now extinct U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) released a major report -- The Electronic Supervisor: New Technology, New Tensions. This report describes a number of new technologies available to management in its ongoing search to ensure that labour performs its required job to management's rigid specifications. Social issues raised with respect to electronic monitoring included privacy, fairness, quality of working life, and stress-related illnesses. The study was also concerned with drug testing, genetic (...) screening, polygraph testing, as well as a variety of technologies for eavesdropping and monitoring. It seems to be appropriate to evaluate the analyses and recommendations made in the report and to extend the evaluation to current technologies. (shrink)

Considerable controversy has surrounded the use of computerized performance monitoring (CPM) by employers. Critics of this technology contend that CPM usage raises serious ethical concerns. Beliefs that the use of computerized performance monitors results in unfair performance evaluation, stress and health problems underlie much of the current concern over this technology. A field study was undertaken to provide empirical evidence that could be used to guide the design and use of computerized performance monitors to minimize these problems. One hundred forty (...) three members of the Communication Workers of America participated in a cross sectional field study. The study examined the relationship between various monitoring system characteristics and employees'' health problems, stress and satisfaction with the performance evaluation process. The ethical implications of the results are discussed. (shrink)