Experts have warned that surveillance of staff work communications has increased since the pandemic began.
A recent poll of more than 3,000 UK workers - which was part of a survey commissioned by the TUC to raise awareness of the experience of workers and trade unions when artificial intelligence (AI) is used by employers to carry out people-management functions - found that 15 per cent reported that employer monitoring has grown since March.
Work communication was cited as being screened by 27 per cent of respondents; 13 per cent had experienced desktop monitoring, whilst 8 per cent stated their social media had been screened.
The survey also found that 26 per cent of employers were using technologies to assess when employees started and finished work and 12 per cent monitored the amount of time taken on breaks. One respondent stated that their workplace used monitoring software that logged hours worked; took photographic timecards every 10 minutes via a webcam; recorded social media usage and counted the number of keyboard strokes per hour.
When workers were asked about their experience of technologies making or informing decisions about them at work, 22 per cent of respondents said they had experience of use of technologies of this type for absence management, 15 per cent stated ratings; 14 per cent for work allocation; 14 per cent for timetabling shifts and 14 per cent in the assessment of training needs and allocation.
The research revealed that only 28 per cent of workers are comfortable with technology being used to make decisions about people at work, with 56 per cent saying that introducing new technologies to monitor the workplace damaged trust between workers and employers.
Frances O’Grady - General Secretary of the TUC - said worker surveillance technology had taken off since the start of the outbreak as employers grappled with the reality of increased remote working. She stated that businesses have invested in it to keep tabs on their workers; set more demanding targets and automate decisions about who to let go. She stated:
“Workers must be properly consulted on the use of AI and be protected from punitive ways of working. As we emerge from this crisis, tech must be used to make working lives better – not to rob people of their dignity.”
Hayfa Mohdzain - Senior Research Adviser at the CIPD - urged employers to think twice before introducing any kind of monitoring or surveillance software to measure an individual’s productivity, highlighting previous CIPD research that had found that intrusive workplace surveillance can damage trust, have a negative impact on morale and cause stress and anxiety. She added:
“Consequently, excessive monitoring can get in the way of performance. Employers may get much better results by investing in line manager training and supporting employees to maximise results.”
Padma Tadi - Senior Associate at Irwin Mitchell - stated that, on the face of it, using AI and technology for workplace monitoring can be a quick and objective way to maintain and monitor performance at work. However, she cautioned employers to always back up the AI’s findings with good management and workplace practices – saying:
“The concern I would have as an employer is the wild objectivity of such data, and it could give rise to an increase in discrimination claims if decisions are purely based on gathering data. It’s not taking into account individual facts and circumstances, including protected characteristics.”
She warned that using such technologies may fall foul of GDPR regulation and compliance as there was specific wording in the data protection regulations about managing the ‘blurred line between personal and private life’ and also how you gather and retain that data.
