Can employers monitor employee e-mail?
In this era of developing technology, many companies must weigh the pro’s and con’s regarding monitoring employees’ e-mail. Employees may perceive monitoring as an invasion of privacy. Employers perceive e-mail monitoring as a method of ensuring security, controlling network communication costs, and monitoring job performance. Employers have been apprehensive about monitoring e-mail because they are sensitive to employees’ privacy expectations. Most courts have found that monitoring e-mail in the regular course of business is not an invasion of privacy because in most employment situations, employees do not have a reasonable expectation of privacy. Establishing a policy is the best way to balance the employee’s right to privacy and the employer’s need to know.
