This Working Life Is your manager spying on you?
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Jun 13, 2025 Penny Williams, an Associate Professor studying AI in worker management, and Dale Tweedie, a Senior Lecturer focused on performance monitoring, dive into workplace surveillance trends. They discuss the evolution from Taylorism to AI tools, highlighting ethical concerns around privacy and trust. The conversation reveals how invasive monitoring affects employee morale and the rise of 'ghost working.' Plus, they explore the benefits of a collaborative approach in evaluation, showcasing a success story of improved productivity through transparency.
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Evolving Workplace Surveillance Challenges
- Performance monitoring evolved from Taylorism's granular body movement analysis to electronic software tracking today.
- The problem of bias and inaccuracy in surveillance remains unsolved even with AI involvement.
Why Employers Use Surveillance
- Employers use AI and automation mainly to track productivity, efficiency, safety, and security.
- Devices like laptops and biometrics are common tools for surveillance today.
Stealthy Workplace Surveillance
- Many surveillance technologies can operate stealthily without employees' knowledge.
- They track keystrokes, mouse movements, screen content, and can remotely control cameras.