I understand _why_ this is a big deal, but I can't help but feeling like if this case involved a company and its employees than there wouldn't be any controvers

I understand _why_ this is a big deal, but I can't help but feeling like if this case involved a company and its employees than there wouldn't be any controversy at all. (Employer: "They're our laptops and we can do what we want with them.") Does anybody else feel this way? Am I way off base here?