November 24, 2010

HR Fact Friday: Will You Check Work E-mail Over the Holiday Weekend?

Filed under: Work/Life Balance — Tags: , , , , — Paul @ 1:28 pm

I will not be checking work email over the long Thanksgiving weekend . . . but I am bringing a little work home with me. Nevertheless some interesting statistics on checking email  from home on long holiday weekends . . .

Long holiday weekends aren’t always free from work. Almost 60% of working Americans check their work e-mail during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and other holidays, according to a recent survey by Xobni.

How often? Of those who do check e-mails during the holidays, 55% said they check at least once a day and 28% visit their inbox multiple times per day, the survey said.

Additional findings on holiday work e-mails:

Reaction to e-mail: 19 % are “Thankful” or “Relieved” to have the distraction of work e-mail on holidays. On the other hand, 41 % of those that received work e-mails said they were either annoyed, frustrated, or resentful.

Gender: The survey suggests men (67%) are more likely to check work e-mail than women (50%).

Age: Employed middle-aged adults, aged 35-44, check work e-mail the most (65%).

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June 18, 2010

HR Fact Friday: Supreme Court Rules on Text Message Privacy Case

Filed under: Employment Law — Tags: , , , , — Paul @ 7:25 am

The Supreme Court overturned a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling concerning employer-provided communication devices and workers’ privacy rights. The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the employer, the city of Ontario, ruling that the search of the employee’s text messages was reasonable and not in violation of the employee’s Fourth Amendment rights.

Background of the case: Police sergeant Jeff Quon received a pager from his employer, the city of Ontario, California. The city’s contract with Arch Wireless Operating Co. contained a limit on the number of characters that could be texted on a monthly basis. If the city’s employees exceeded that limit, the city would be charged extra fees.

(more…)

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April 10, 2009

HR Fact Friday: Employer-Provided Wireless Devices – Benefit or Electronic Leashes?

Filed under: Work/Life Balance — Tags: , , , , , , — Paul @ 11:48 am

Employees view receiving mobile devices, such as BlackBerrys, from their companies as a benefit, but at a large price, according to a recent survey of 627 employees commissioned by WorldatWork.

One-third of employees surveyed said that they view receiving wireless devices from their companies as part of their total rewards package. Half of employees surveyed said they felt that these devices signify their status or importance at the company.

But at the same time, 42% of employees said they believe that by getting the devices, they are expected to always be available. Three out of four respondents said they never turn their devices off. Most employees surveyed said they use their wireless devices between one and five hours per day during what they consider non-work time.

Employees have come to view having these devices as a double-edged sword. On one hand, employees seem to value receiving the devices from their companies. On the other hand, the devices make employees feel “like they have a noose tied around their necks and must always be available.

To address this, companies need to put policies in place. For example, accounting firm Ernst & Young has a policy that says employees are not expected to look at their e-mail on weekends.

However, such corporate policies are pretty rare. It’s more common for companies to hand out these devices than to create policies around their usage. And given the current economic climate, it is doubtful that employees are going to approach their HR managers anytime soon about creating such a policy.

Source: Workforce.com, Jessica Marquez

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May 9, 2008

HR Fact Friday: Who Is Reading Your E-mail?

Filed under: Communication — Tags: , , — Paul @ 7:32 am

Is all this hub-bub about employer e-mail monitoring and rampant employee abuse of workplace email and high-speed Internet connections based on fact or just Big Brother ‘scare tactics’ to keep employee noses to the grindstone and hock Internet and e-mail monitoring software? Regardless of where you stand on this point, if you don’t have a company e-mail and computer/network use policy in place, and communicated to your employees, you really do have your head in the sand. Consider these statistics:

Almost one-third of companies said they’ve fired an employee in the last 12 months for violating e-mail policies, and 52% of the companies said they have disciplined an employee for violating e-mail rules in the past year (Seattle Times, 7/2006 survey)

(more…)

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