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May I ask why privacy matters at work? Not trying to be a dick. But shouldn’t people at work be doing only the things they’re paid for on company time?

• kelnos 3y ago
  Privacy matters wherever you are. Even at work, most people like to believe they are trusted to do what they've said they are going to do without needing to be constantly monitored and micromanaged. Anything else is unsettling and oppressive. I would refuse to work at a company that expected me to give up my privacy during working hours.
  • josho 3y ago
    > Privacy matters wherever you are. Sure, but it doesn't really answer the question. > Anything else is unsettling and oppressive. I understand the argument to be made for monitoring employees as they move throughout the work site. If there is a building fire, then security can validate that I've made it out safely and they don't need to spend resources trying to find me in the building. I don't find this oppressive. I'm not even sure what I'm giving up for having my physical presence monitored at a work building. I also agree that privacy matters, and I'll advocate for it. But, I frequently struggle to express why it matters.
  • tomcam 3y ago
    But can’t you use your own phone? Also, how would you feel if you were paying employees to act contrary to your interests on your time?
• jurynulifcation 3y ago
  Privacy matters at work because the interests of the employee and the employer are in tension. Do you expect an employee to leave every personal item out of work? Should employees expect to not speak of their personal lives, or to have artifacts of their personal life leak into the workplace? To say that the boundary should be absolute is hopelessly naive. Privacy matters because it is a leaky barrier, and the employer should not be capable of retaining personal information they can use to emotionally extort or legally strong-arm their employee when it's useful for them.
  • tomcam 3y ago
    I kind of do expect expect to leave their private matters at home. Or the very least, to handle them during break time on their own phones. This does not seem at all oppressive to me.
    • jurynulifcation 3y ago
      And in the ideal world, that's fine, but again- hopelessly naive in the real world. Taken to the extreme, why should we not record all audio? And if someone receives an urgent phone call from home, something extremely personal, should that stay in the company's records? No, for fear that the company will use their power disparity to exert undue control over the employee's life from them attending to the actually important matters in their life. That's why privacy matters.