Question

In your opinion, should emails sent from your work computer, using your employer's email account. during work hours be subject to the hours be subject to the right of privacy? Does your opinion change if the facts change, such as, what if it is from your work laptopk, using your employer's email account, but it is from your home after working hours? Please explain why?

As the employer, why would you want to maintain control over the emails sent by your employees. Please explain why

Answer 1

I think the emails sent from my work computer using my employer's email account should not be subject to the right of privacy. My opinion is the same irrespective of whether the emails were sent during work hours or after work hours. The work computer and the work email are strictly for work purposes and an employee should not be using the same for personal work be it during the working hours or after the working hours. I think the employer has a lot of things at stake when it allows the employees to use its email account. The employees can misuse the privilege if sending emails from employer's email account or computer become subject to employee's privacy.

As an employer, I would like to keep control over the emails sent by my employees as I have a number of things at stake. Employees can misuse the email account as employees can get involved in criminal or anti-social activities by using the email account. This can damage the reputation of the company. Also, employees can misuse the anonymity provided by employer's email account in social media. Moreover, employees can transfer confidential information and data of the company to their personal email account or to other parties through the work email. Employees can also send threatening emails to others using work-email for personal purposes. Moreover, an employee can damage the relationship of the company with its suppliers and other key stakeholders by sending damaging emails to these parties.