Is There a Right to Privacy in the Workplace?

Do employees have a right to privacy? More specifically, should employers be allowed to monitor their employees’ computer activities? To answer this question, I shall look at private property. I will also look at the effect of not monitoring the employees’ online activity. Looking at private property, and the result from misuse of company property, employees do not have the right to privacy in the workplace. (In this essay, I will focus on businesses monitoring their employees’ computer activities, such as surfing the internet for pornography.)

Employees do not have a claim to a right to privacy in the workplace. The reason is simply based on the notion of private property. When a business purchases office equipment, it becomes a part of its property. (The same can be said if a business leased its office equipment.) Because this is the business’ property, it has the right dictate the proper use of said equipment; just like if you lent something of yours to a friend, you would want to make sure that your property was properly used. Another attribute of property is that you have the right to monitor it. This same right applies to businesses.

Now, I will look at the effects of allowing employees to misuse company equipment. This analysis will add reason for why employees do not have a right to privacy in the workplace. When employees spend time surfing the internet for pornography instead of working, they place an additional cost burden upon the business for which they work. The cost is primarily seen in the lost of productivity that results. When an employee surfs the internet for pornography, he or she obvious is not working and is therefore not productive. Now, because this produces an additional and unnecessary cost, should not businesses be allowed to implement cost-cutting measures? And, it seems to me, is not the only way to do so is by monitoring employee activity?

Employees do not have a right to privacy in the workplace. There are two reasons for this. First, businesses own the office equipment. Because of this, they have the right to dictate the proper use of this equipment, and they have the right monitor to ensure proper use of the equipment. Second, misuse of the office equipment of businesses produces a cost for these businesses. As a result, businesses have the right to monitor their office equipment to ensure that costs are reduced.