Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, many workers welcomed new opportunities to work from home. This work-from-home transformation also accelerated employers’ use of electronic surveillance systems. E-surveillance, sometimes termed “bossware” by critics, let employers track workers’ activities remotely using easily available software. For example, software can register what websites workers visit, how often they move their mouse, and can even record from workers’ screens and webcams. Dashboards interpret the data e-surveillance collects. This can include producing real-time productivity scores that combine performance data into an easily observed and ranked number. While workers can be notified when e-surveillance systems are operating, many systems have the technical capacity to operate without workers being aware. One company boasts that its software “can be silently and remotely installed, so you can conduct covert investigations and bullet-proof evidence gathering without alarming the suspected wrongdoer.” 1
In the United States, market research firm Gartner found 60% of large employers use monitoring systems.1 Predictably, e-surveillance has also triggered employee resistance. These include online discussions of legal rights, e-countermeasures like migrating work discussions to new platforms and even physical products like “mouse jigglers” that simulate online activity.
To assess these developments, we need to understand exactly what is new about these e-surveillance systems, and how they affect work and workplaces. We can then consider how workers, managers,
