Employees finding Blackberry’s a mixed blessing.

Recent news reports and surveys are showing that employees are working more due to technology. The Blackberry and other smart phones have increased productivity among many workers that use them. Employees are also saying that they are working longer hours because of Blackberry and other PDA’s. Everyone has herd the term "CrackBerry" because employee’s can not escape the use of there BlackBerry. Some employees are saying that they find it difficult to escape the office and to stop working once they leave for the day.   The Pew Research center reports that 48% of employee in larger companies are expected or are required to check work related emails when not at the office. This has become an issue for many Human resource professional across America.  Should the few minutes an employee checks his email be counted towards hours worked? Should a supervisor be communicating with employees about projects after normal work hours? How will this be counted when an employee is a salaried individual?

Does your company have a PDA or BlackBerry policy? What about a driving policy while using a cell phone? In today litigious society it is very important for employers to have such policies in place. To learn how to write a Blackberry or Cell Phone policy contact your HR professional or StaffScapes for assistance in creating a new policy.

See Also

• Pew reseach Center
  Emails a mixed blessing