Employee monitoring over the past few hundred years was a difficult task for both employers and employees. The difficulties mainly came from not having the ability to implement technologies for maximizing the benefits and eliminating the potential negative aspects of employee monitoring.
From the perspective of systems thinking, employee monitoring is clearly an asset (unless done poorly). It can drastically increase worker productivity, increase the efficiency of the overall business, and increase worker safety.
From the perspective of employees, employee monitoring can be a liability for some, or a system that will save their life if something goes wrong, the reason they have a secure job, or the reason for their higher salary/wage.
Employee monitoring systems come in many shapes and sizes, such as video surveillance, keycards and biometrics, online activity monitoring, GPS tracking, employee monitoring and productivity software, and the internet of things (IoT)
What are the myths about employee monitoring systems?
Employers who track their employees do not trust them
This could not be further from the truth. Employers emphasize putting employee monitoring systems in place to ensure the safety of their employees, not to track their every move due to trust issues.
Tracking systems help employers organize and plan their workflows to match the capacity of their employees. This leads to better job satisfaction and more efficient operation of the business.
Employee monitoring systems invade privacy
Employers and employees both know everyone cannot be productive 100% of the time they are working. Everyone wants to rest once in a while when it’s needed, and no one likes to feel like they are constantly being watched.
However, employees should not expect total privacy with tracking systems when they are working in dangerous situations or with company-issued equipment. Each country has different laws surrounding employee privacy, and workers should have an understanding of what employers are tracking and what they are not allowed to track.
Employee monitoring systems only benefit employers
Tracking systems should be transparent and give the employees the ability to also view their tracking data if they want to. This helps identify what an employee may be doing well and what they are struggling with or drastically improve their safety while on the job. Employee monitoring systems are ultimately made to make conditions better for the employees and not the employer. Safer and efficient working conditions lead to happier, healthier, and wealthier employees in the long run.
What are the benefits of employee monitoring with UWB RFID for the employees?
Top 3 safety features of employee monitoring
Lone worker safety
Lone worker safety is improved through employee monitoring systems, especially UWB RFID tracking systems, through accident/risk monitoring. They allow workers to be monitored when working in high-risk and/or remote work environments alerting management of safety concerns such as falls, collisions, prolonged inactivity, or use of a panic button if a lone worker is under duress.
Effective and fast mustering roll-call
Effective roll-call systems integrate with both time-tracking and attendance systems for tracking employees, visitors, and contractors working onsite. UWB RFID tracking technology supports integration with time-tracking and attendance systems while also offering cloud computing integrations, sleek tags to replace traditional ID badges, and the ability to roll-call over a large area while also identifying specific locations/clusters of workers within the area.
Collision avoidance
Did you know that about 1 in 6 workplace fatalities are forklift-related? (1) Employee monitoring systems can significantly reduce workplace injuries related to forklifts, robots, and industrial trucks. UWB RFID tracking systems allow for automatic audiovisual alerts and adjustments to the activity of forklifts, robotics, and industrial trucks in proximity to workers in real-time to prevent workplace injuries and increase operational efficiencies.
Top 3 efficiency features of employee monitoring
Better time management
Tracking systems allow the efficient use of both workflow and workspace optimization, especially by using UWB RFID tracking within indoor environments. They can automatically enforce specific workplace rules such as physical distancing, zone access control, and maximum capacity limits. When in place, tracking systems can generate high volumes of data for further analysis to help differentiate between value-added and non-value added employee activities.
Yard management
Employee monitoring systems using UWB RFID technology provide a real-time view of material handling, safety, security, and turnaround time through yard management. They are used to automatically direct trailers to available docking stations to eliminate ques, automatically check-in and check out trailers at the gates to the yard, and integrate with forklift, robotic, and employee systems to improve the yards loading and unloading times.
Real-time asset tracking
UWB RFID tracking systems remove inefficient asset retrieval times, lost items, stolen items, and misplace assets within the workplace. They allow for geo-fencing of company assets to limit the movement of assets within the workplace to ensure they stay within designated areas.
