UK Businesses Track Employees Via Cell Phone

Companies tracking cellular telephone locations in the UK have recently seen an explosion of interest by employers wishing to track employees and vehicles. Now companies can be alerted if employees are caught in traffic - or at the golf course - and can re-route resources more efficiently to handle sudden demand. Although tracking by trucking companies has existed for some time through GPS systems, the comparatively low cost of mobile-phone tracking now makes this benefit more widely available. The tracking technology uses triangulation to find the location of a cell-phone in relation to cellular transmission masts, and the resolution varies from a hundred metres in a city centre to several kilometres in rural locations. The US Wireless Communications and Public Safety Act of 1999 anticipates that by 2006 all mobile phones in the US will have E911 technology, which produces GPS coordinates of individual cell phones. The resolution using GPS technology is much finer than triangulation, down to the order of several metres. While businesses see greater efficiency through better asset management, privacy advocates are concerned with the ethics of tracking, given the often unequal relationship between employee and employer. Staff could feel that the monitoring is coercive, but employers argue that they have a right to track and manage their assets to greatest advantage. Under English law, an employee must consent to having his or her mobile phone tracked, and while they are being tracked random alerts are sent to users informing them of that fact. In the US, there is currently no such requirement, and the only safeguard is the benevolence of telecom providers. In Canada, the tracking of employees engaged in inter-provincial enterprises is protected under PIPEDA, Canada's federal privacy legislation. The whereabouts of a person can be seen as part of her personal information, indicating that informed consent to tracking would have to be obtained by the employer by some means, such as through the employment contract. In industries which are not within federal jurisdiction, provincial privacy statutes (such as those in force in Alberta, BC and Quebec) may apply. For a recent news story on the UK situation, see: http://makeashorterlink.com/?L291434AC For the text of PIPEDA, visit: http://www.privcom.gc.ca/legislation/02_06_01_01_e.asp On related questions in the US regarding cell phone tracking for law enforcement purposes and for customer preferences, see the most recent issue of e-tips® (Vol 4, Number 15, February 1, 2006, "US Federal Courts Divided Over Cell Phone Surveillance" and "Apple iTunes Ministore Software Modified After Concern Voiced by Privacy Advocates". Summary by: Nyall Engfield