Negative Impacts of Technology in the Workplace

Kim White - Recruitment Consultant | 1 Dec 2007 12:49 AM

Technology in the workplace has many positives with efficiency, cutting costs and on a whole making the whole process a lot easier and quicker. Although with the introduction of blogging, instant message services and websites such as Facebook and Myspace employers need to be mindful that the very thing in place to make their business more efficient could be costing them thousands of dollars a day.

In a recent Age article (August 20, 2007) Facebook is reported as becoming every boss’s nightmare, as the social networking website encourages its members to be online whilst at work.

As workers mange their online social life via Facebook, the costs of workers being in front of the computer screen rather than being productive, is losing millions of corporate dollars.

According to SurfControl figures, if just one employee spent an hour a day on Facebook, it could cost a business $6200 per year. With 800,000 businesses this could translate to $5 billion nationally. (The Age, August 20, 2007)

Becoming increasingly popular in Australia is web logs and “blogging”. ‘Blogs’ are online diaries in which owners post information, comments and views which anyone may access.

A vast number of bloggers are disgruntled employees who are using their blogs to comment on their workplace, their colleagues and their employer. Besides blogging in work hours the posting of company secrets including office gossip also is a concern for employers.

Few employers have addressed developing policies addressing this issue, and according to Stephen Price (Partner and Workplace Relations Practice Leader) Employers need to understand the ramifications and protect themselves.

“Blogging that amounts to harassment of a co-worker will be a breach of an employer’s EEO policy and a technical breach of contract”. Employers should also ensure internet policies deal with blogging, consider conducting internet surveillance in accordance with the law, and use blocking software to bar certain blogging sites. (Stephen Price, Human Resource Magazine, 4^th April 2006).

Besides the new high tech blogging and social networking websites, the workplace internet is also being used to complete household administration tasks.

Reported in Human Resource Magazine (12^th December 2006) almost 50 percent of Australians who have internet access at work spend up to three hours a week performing personal household administrative tasks. 48 per cent of workers claimed that using the internet for personal use actually increased their productivity, with holiday planning at 38 per cent being a popular internet past time at work. 53 per cent of survey respondents reported using the internet for personal purposes during their lunch hour.

Technology in the workplace can cost employers money. Employers need to be aware of what their staff are accessing, the time it is taking them to do so and have policies in place to manage the use of company property including the internet.

References:

Human Resource Magazine 4^th April 2006

Human Resource Magazine 12^th December 2006

Human Resource Magazine 24^th July 2007

The Age, Work Shy Facebookers, Monday 20^th August 2007