Employers look closely at what workers do on job

Employers have long warned their workers that company e-mail, Internet use and even phone calls are subject to monitoring.

But what many employees don't realize is that spying is going high-tech. In the spirit of James Bond wizardry, companies are tracking workers' whereabouts through Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite, implanting employees with microchips with their knowledge and hiring private investigators to check up on what employees are really doing at work.

Hewlett-Packard became embroiled in a spying scandal after being accused of hiring private eyes to spy on its directors, sending computer spyware to reporters and probing private phone records to ferret out boardroom leaks.

The developments suggest that a Brave New Workplace is here. Employers in today's highly competitive and lawsuit-driven work environment are monitoring employees with unprecedented zeal.

Marc Rotenberg, executive director and president of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, a public interest research center in Washington, says many companies have legitimate and legal reasons for such monitoring, but gumshoe tactics also can erode trust as employers become suspicious of their own staff.