In workplaces, there are several factors that have been under controversies. Among them is work places employees’ privacy, employee communication internal and external communication, employee compensation among others. The main issue which has caused a great debate is the issue of employer inspecting an employee’s emails. The federal law protects employees from employers’ exploitation and also to ensure that their rights are not contravened as they are enshrined in the constitution. The federal laws of the U.S. protect employees in the workplace and ensure that all their rights are adequately protected. There are some factors that employers may overstep on the terms of employment or discrimination in the workplace. These factors that are …show more content…
Provision of protective gears- Majority of the lawsuits in the labor courts are brought on grounds of industrial accidents. This has been a lot of controversies that revolve around provision of the protective gear in the work place. However, most organization do not provide this gear hence in an event of an industrial accident, victims or employees blame the organization but most organizations refute these claims. ii. Sexual harassments- the issue of sexual harassment has been under controversies based on the fact that it can hardly be quantified or qualified. Some actions can be seen as sexual harassment by the employer to the employees but due to legal bureaucracies, where the plaintiffs are required to prove their cases beyond reasonable doubts, their cases may fail despite the fact that they were indeed sexually harassed (Aggarwal, & Gupta, 2000). This has made stakeholders to try and come up with comprehensive ways to prevent or deal with cases of sexual harassments. Workplace privacy has been another issue under controversy some parts believes that the employees have the right to privacy while most court cases have rule that the employer have the right the employees email. There are both legal and ethical aspects that ascribe to the privacy policy (Sipior, & Ward, 1995). This is anchored in the fact that the employers ought to monitor a number of things that …show more content…
That the employees do not share confidential information of the company which may negatively the operation of the company. During signing of the employment contract, employees subscribe to ensure that they protect the company’s information which they may obtain under privilege circumstance. ii. Standards- in performance appraisal, several aspects need to be brought on board this includes how employees communicate with clientele. iii. Crime detection- employees may be planning to carry out a crime; however this can be deterred by napping emails with such plans in advance (Hornung, 2005).
Conclusion
In conclusion, it is apparent that there are several matters that affect the employees in the workplace. Some are as a result of the legal provisions while others due to ethical requirements. The federal laws have strived to protect the employees from the employers’ exploitation but these legal provisions have not been helpful. On the flipside, there are some justifications for email monitoring by employers and employees do not have to worry if they are doing the right
A poll by MacWorld states that over twenty-one percent of all employees are monitored at work, and the larger the company, the higher the percentage (Privacy 445). Unaware of this electronic monitoring, most employees often are not working at their peak performance due to this type of scrutiny. The majority of Americans believe that electronic monitoring should not be allowed.
How much sexual harassment takes place in the work place? Well, there has been 11,314 complaints of sexual harassment made to US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, In 2011, 84 percent filed by women and 16 percent filed by men. That shows women are more likely to be harassed in the workplace. Have you ever wondered how sexual harassment can be stopped in the workplace? There are many ways to avoid harassment and to stop harassment if being harassed. Have you thought about being harassed by your boss and wondered can he get into trouble with the law? Throughout this paper you will find out useful information about sexual harassment and the laws that can protect you if you're being sexually harassed in your workplace.
Roberts, Barry S. and Richard A. Mann. ?Sexual Harassment in the Workplace: A Primer.? n.pag. On-line. Internet. 5 Dec 2000. Available WWW:
Sexual Harassment is unwanted sexual harassment by someone at work, be it a boss or another employee, this is what I have always thought how sexual harassment in the workplace was defined. It is so much more. Sexual harassment is now defined as telling someone they look nice, yes that is sexual harassment today. Telling someone they smell good, yes that is sexual harassment today. There are so many issues that can be considered sexual harassment that there are too many to name them all in this one research paper. You cannot pick up a newspaper or turn on the news without hearing about the latest sexual harassment case. This happens everywhere, big companies, small companies, movie stars, schools, restaurants, warehouses, bus drivers, all industries, no place is immune. . Human resource departments have to stay current on all examples of sexual harassment; they must keep current with all the legalities involved in educating staff and pursuing sexual harassment cases in the workplace.
25 Privacy Rights Clearinghouse (2002) Employee Monitoring: Is There Privacy in the Workplace? . (6/3/2004)
Sometimes there is no middle ground. Monitoring of employees at the workplace, either you side with the employees or you believe management owns the network and should call the shots. The purpose of this paper is to tackle whether monitoring an employee is an invasion of privacy. How new technology has made monitoring of employees by employers possible. The unfairness of computerized monitoring software used to watch employees. The employers desire to ensure that the times they are paying for to be spent in their service is indeed being spent that way. Why not to monitor employees, as well as tips on balancing privacy rights of employees at the job.
The computer is considered one of the most important technological advances of the twentieth century. Security and privacy issues have been in existence long before the computer became a vital component of organizations' operations. Nevertheless, the operating features of a computer make it a double-edged sword. Computer technologies with reliable error detection and recording capabilities, permit the invasion of a supposedly secure environment to occur on a grand scale and go undetected. Furthermore, computer and communications technology permit the invasion of a persons' privacy and likewise go undetected. Two forces threaten privacy: one, the growth of information technology with its enhanced capacity for surveillance, communication, computation, storage and retrieval and two, the more insidious threat, the increased value of information in decision making. Information has become more vital in the competitive environment, thus, decision makers covet it even if it viol!
One type of surveillance is employee monitoring. Many employers monitor their workers’ activities for one reason or another. Companies monitor employees using many methods. They may use access panels that requires employees to identify themselves to control entry to various area in the building, allowing them to create a log of employee movements. They may also use software to monitor attendance and work hours. Additionally, many programs allows companies to monitor activities performed on work computers, inspect employee emails, log keystrokes, etc. An emerging methods of employee monitor also include social network and search engine monitoring. Employers can find out who their employees are associated with, as well as other potentially incriminating information. (Ciocchetti)
Each year many people first become aware of sexual harassment when they are harassed in the workplace. Today in the United States there still seems to be a need for general information about sexual harassment. Many people are unaware of exactly what sexual harassment is, how it affects its victims, where it happens, and what to do if it happens to them. There are many laws that protect people from sexual harassment and provide them with information about what to do if you should ever be in this situation (Wyatt, 2000).
In Australia, Employers should implement best practice on how to maintain privacy in the workplace in accordance with the privacy standards set out in the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) (Welcome to the Fair Work Ombudsman website. n.d.). Privacy is able to keep our own personal information private and also able to do things without any electronic monitoring in the workplace. Nowadays, many company increased the usage of technology such as internet and email in the workplace. This can create issues in privacy. When employees’ access to web browsing activities during working hours, the employer can be scrutinized it. Employers take this action due to fear lawsuit if employees act in inappropriate ways. Therefore, the best policy is to explain clearly how is appropriate to use email and internet at work and outline what type of use is prohibited in the workplace. Besides that, employer also needs to ensure the employee didn’t disclose or disseminate any important information to the competitors or
One particular crime that could be committed by employees who use the internet at work is hacking. Hacking is one of the most well-known types of computer crimes, in this context, the term refers to the unauthorized access of another’s computer system (HG.org Staff, 2015). This means that if the employee in not allowed to use the internet, for personal use, than there is a possibility that they could get charged for such crime. Because the policy will state they do not have the authority to access the organizations computer system for personal use. In addition, they must know that all use of computers systems while at work will be monitor, including e-mails. Piracy and cyber terrorism are other crimes that one can face when using a computer
Clark, C. S. (1991, August 9). Sexual harassment. CQ Researcher, 1, 537-560. Retrieved from http://library.cqpress.com/cqresearcher
Sexual harassment in the workplace has been a huge problem in recent history. It can happen to anyone, and it can happen everywhere. It can affect all types of races, genders and ages. Statistics today show that more and more sexual harassment has become an issue due to the large number of cases presented. Mainstream media becomes consumed covering sexual harassment because of the high-profile cases.
Sexual Harassment is a growing problem in today's workplace. The signs and causes of harassment are not always easy to detect. There are a growing number of cases through statistics and actual cases that’s been headlined in news rep...
In today’s workplace, sexual harassment is a growing problem. The legal definition of sexual harassment is any unwelcome sexual advance or conduct on the job that creates an intimidating, hostile or offensive working environment. Another definition is the making of unwanted and offensive sexual advances or of sexually offensive remarks or acts, especially by one in a superior or supervisory position. Women and men of all ages, backgrounds, races and experience are harassed on the job. Sexual harassment encountered in workplaces is a hazard across the world that reduces the quality of working life, jeopardizes the well-being of women and men, undermines gender equality and imposes costs on firms and organizations.