Telstra unveils work spy deal for bosses with Navman Wireless satellite tracking Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/your-business/more-employ

http://www.news.com.au/business/your-business/more-employers-to-spy-on-workers/story-fn9evb64-1226176377949

TELSTRA is offering business owners the chance to spy on their workers on the road for less than $40 a month.
The telco giant has partnered with GPS service provider Navman Wireless to offer a small tracking device to install in company vehicles which will connect with the Next G wireless network.
The device lets bosses see locations, times, speed, and any unauthorised vehicle usage transmitted live for $38.50 a month on a 36-month contract or paid upfront.

While demand for this type of technology has increased over the past year, this is the first time Telstra has offered a deal allowing its corporate customers to bundle "fleet management" along with the rest of their bill.
A spokesperson for the ACTU said that although some technologies which allow the employer to better monitor employee whereabouts and performance can be acceptable it depends on what their overall purpose is.

“Unions support certain reasonable uses of such technologies, for instance to promote employee safety," the spokesperson said.

"However, unions oppose the use of such technologies where a major purpose is to spy on employees for disciplinary purposes, or intensify work.”

While this kind of technology has been used before in the transport sector, there is an increasing demand for it in the services industry.

Navman Wireless Asia Pacific Vice President Ian Daniel said growth had doubled year on year, but the overall purpose of these devices was not to spy on employees, but to increase productivity and efficiency for companies.

“At the end of the day you’re not tracking the employee but tracking an asset,” Mr Daniel said. “It allows companies to track efficiency through things such as billable hours on site, service delivery and monitoring that conditions such as speeding are adhered to."

He said how employees feel about the privacy issue would depend on how each individual company broached the subject with its employees.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/business/your-business/more-employers-to-spy-on-workers/story-fn9evb64-1226176377949#ixzz1cJS5ipwn