The rise of remote work has prompted many employers to equip themselves with monitoring tools to ensure their employees aren’t slacking off or procrastinating when they’re not in the office. But employees see this increased digital surveillance as an attack on their privacy and independence, with some saying they are prepared to make sacrifices to remedy the situation.
Nearly one in two Americans reportedly agree or are on the fence about taking a pay cut to ensure their employers do not monitor their online activity in or out of the workplace, according to a survey by the employee-screening platform Checkr.
This feeling is particularly strong among younger workers, including 54% of generation Z and 47% of millennials. As for baby boomers, 45% say they would be prepared to earn less in exchange for a little more digital privacy at work.
These figures show the extent to which online monitoring raises tensions within a workforce. This is because remote-monitoring tools have become considerably more sophisticated: software can now take screenshots with a computer’s webcam to ensure the employee is actually at work, while others record keystrokes or mouse movements.
This veritable arsenal of tools is making not only employees, but also the American authorities, feel nervous: in May last year, the White House announced that it would be looking into how companies use these technologies, aware that they can entail “serious risks for workers”.
And yet, employers in many countries around the world use them widely. And in the US, 56% of workers surveyed by Checkr say their superiors monitor their online activity during working hours – a practice 65% of them consider an invasion of their privacy.
But the overwhelming majority of respondents are most concerned about not knowing exactly what data about them is being collected by their company, or how it is being used.
To remedy this, employers need to show transparency and restraint towards their employees: too much surveillance can quickly be perceived as snooping, leading to increased stress and reduced job satisfaction.
In the long run, these negative feelings can push people to quit. So, it might be best to refrain from spying on remote workers, especially given that this working arrangement has been shown to boost productivity.