Wearable Technology That Monitors Workers Could Lead to Legal Problems for Employers
Wearable electronic monitoring devices have been long used to help monitor an individual’s health and fitness, writes Karen Turner for The Washington Post. “But now wearable use is becoming increasingly common in the workplace to record, analyze and enhance worker productivity, raising concerns among lawyers and labor specialists who feel that it’s a step toward stripping employees of workplace rights.”
She quoted from a recent study by customer management software company Salesforce showing that 86 percent of U.S. companies plan to invest more in wearable applications on the job this year. And 40 percent are considering using wearables to monitor employee time management and real-time employee communication.
But some labor lawyers are concerned about unintended legal consequences. For instance, some employees might not be meeting productivity standards due to a medical condition or disability. And employers could be sued simply because they have access to physical data about their employees.
