Monitoring remote work in Canada: support or surveillance
Masoodi, Mohammed ; Greig, Michael ; Neumann, W. Patrick ; Searcy, Cory ; Andrey, Sam
Toronto Metropolitan University
2023
36 p.
epidemic disease ; telework ; employee monitoring ; quality of working life ; working conditions ; questionnaire survey
Work organization
French
Bibliogr.
"The pandemic expanded digital technologies to connect and support remote workers, and increased electronic monitoring of those working remotely. While some employers see value in monitoring, overuse can negatively affect employee well-being and job satisfaction.
This research examined the experiences and attitudes towards remote work in Canada for employees and supervisors and sought to understand how the arrangement has affected productivity, satisfaction, trust and well-being.
Overall, employees and supervisors were satisfied with working remotely with job satisfaction, productivity and trust reported higher among employers. Many people also reported reduced levels of connection with colleagues, although 76 per cent continued to hold meetings.
Remote work is here to stay with workers increasingly seeking remote or hybrid work arrangements. There are limited guidelines and policies to support Canadian employers in finding the best approach for electronic monitoring and employee supports in remote work. Further policy discussions are needed to outline best practices for employers and protections for remote workers.
Digital
The ETUI is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the ETUI.