Tech made work life worse, say staff

ONLY one in five workers believe technology has improved their working life in the past five years, despite the growth of video calling, remote working and other supposed labour savers.

An even greater proportion believe it is actively making life worse, as bosses use “Orwellian” monitoring tools to keep tabs on their performance. Asked whether this type of surveillance has had a negative impact on their mental health or sense of wellbeing at work, one third agreed, a survey by the GMB union found.

Gary Smith, general secretary of the GMB, said: “Bosses are trying to play ‘Big Brother’ to workers and it’s got to stop.

“In a relentless drive to push workers harder, they are affecting their mental health. Technology should be used to ease workers’ burden – not trap them in an Orwellian nightmare.”

The union is calling on the Government to introduce legislation to limit the ability of employers to digitally monitor the activities of staff.

It comes amid growing demand for “tattleware” – computer programmes firms use to track the activity of staff through emails, screen monitoring, keystroke logging and mouse activity.