According to the 2003 Electronic Policies & Practices Survey, 52 percent of employers monitor email. Three-fourths have written email rules in place and 22 percent have fired an employee for violating those rules.
More than 1,000 U.S. employers participated in the 2003 survey, conducted by the American Management Association, The ePolicy Institute, and Clearswift, maker of software to manage and secure electronic communications. In a 2001 survey, 17 percent of companies reported firing employees over improper e-mail use.
In 2007, the figures were as follows;
The 28% of employers who have fired workers for e-mail misuse did so for the following reasons: violation of any company policy (64%); inappropriate or offensive language (62%); excessive personal use (26%); breach of confidentiality rules (22%); other (12%).
The 30% of bosses who have fired workers for Internet misuse cite the following reasons: viewing, downloading, or uploading inappropriate/offensive content (84%); violation of any company policy (48%); excessive personal use (34%); other (9%).
Computer monitoring takes many forms, with 45% of employers tracking content, keystrokes, and time spent at the keyboard. Another 43% store and review computer files. In addition, 12% monitor the blogosphere to see what is being written about the company, and another 10% monitor social networking sites.
Messages that create a sexist, racist or hostile work environment were among the most common problems in email. While workers may be disciplined or fired because of inappropriate email messages, companies can and will face the risk of lawsuits.
Find out what your company’s email policies are and make sure that you comply. The policy may be in your employee handbook, you may have signed a contract regarding email and internet use, or you may need to ask your IT department or HR department what the policy is. Note that if your employee handbook contains the policy, by having the handbook in your possession you imply that you have read and agreed to the policy whether you have actually read it or not. Ignorance is not bliss in this case.
Here are some tips for handling email at work:
Keep it Professional
*Never* convey anger, use profanity or make racist or sexist remarks. Remember, inappropriate words or images sent via email can and will come back to haunt you. Don't send or forward emails containing libellous, defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks - even if they are meant to be a joke.
Keep in mind that your company does not pay you to engage in the mailing of jokes or quetionable material. Your email is company property. It is given to you so that you may do business on behalf of the company. Misuse of company property is a terminable offense. It may also be viewed as theft of company resources when email is misused.
Don’t Discuss Confidential Information
Most email is insecure unless it has been encoded or encrypted. So, sending an email is like sending a postcard for many eyes to see. Don’t send confidential information. If you can't say it publicly, you can't say it in email.
Think Before You Send
Don’t treat email casually. Play it safe! In general, don't write anything in email that you wouldn't feel comfortable saying in a crowded elevator. My rule of thumb is that if you can't say it to your mother, don't say it at all.
Keep in mind that email is not the best way to communicate and is simply a way of sending information. People may interpret communications in email in the wrong way. Email cannot possibly convey facial expressions, body language, or tone of voice.
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