Snooping bosses raise workplace stress and lower productivity

Not yet 100 days in power and it seems that the Labour government is set to row back on another big policy pledge. As part of the party’s plan to “make work pay”, Labour vowed to do more to stop bosses snooping on their staff, but according to recent reports, it could be set to weaken these commitments.
Significant advances in technology, falling costs and the shift to home working during the pandemic have brought with them a dramatic increase in workplace surveillance. PwC has recently revealed plans to track the location of its 26,000 UK employees. This move is evidence of a worrying shift as the relationship between bosses and their employees changes.
The rise of workplace surveillance stems from a frantic drive to maximise employee efficiency. While it’s understandable that employers want to seek higher productivity and keep staff focused — especially with remote work and the context of our stalling economy — this rationale increasingly serves as a pretext for excessive and unjustified monitoring. It overlooks the profound human cost of intrusive surveillance technologies, which compromise employees’ well-being, job satisfaction and trust. Meanwhile, practices such as those of PwC set precedents that threaten to compromise workers’ privacy and allow bosses to reach further into the lives of their staff.
• Big Brother is watching workers, even at home
Equally alarming is how quickly these intrusions are becoming normalised. PwC isn’t alone — many employees are subjected to some form of electronic surveillance. From construction workers forced to give biometric information to sign in to work, to supermarket staff performance being pushed to the limit by handheld computers, surveillance is becoming a pervasive part of the workplace. With the introduction of each one of these practices, we risk facing a future where workplace surveillance becomes the norm and employers feel that the recording of every move, click and keystroke is legitimate.
No one wants a boss constantly peering over their shoulder. Imagine clocking in and knowing everything you do is being tracked — from your facial expressions to how fast you work. This relentless surveillance can turn the workplace into a breeding ground for anxiety and strained relationships, fostering a toxic environment. The result? Increased stress, plummeting job satisfaction, and a host of physical and mental health problems. These outcomes will worsen the UK’s already poor productivity.
These tools are not just invasive. They’re unreliable and discriminatory, turning the workplace into a minefield of stress and exclusion. It’s widely recognised that women and people from ethnic minority backgrounds tend to bear the brunt of surveillance tech. Earlier this year, a gig economy worker received a settlement from Uber Eats after arguing that racially biased facial recognition checks had barred him from accessing the app, cutting off his ability to work. The risks posed by invasive and flawed technology far outweigh any illusory gains in productivity or security, undermining trust and fairness in the workplace for the appearance of control.
The future of work should not be defined by the pervasive oversight of Big Brother-style technology. While some workers have successfully resisted invasive monitoring, these victories, though important, are not enough to halt the trend. The problem is systemic; without safeguards, companies will continue to introduce excessive surveillance, and workers will pay the price.
With an Employment Rights Bill on the horizon, there’s no better moment to act, but Labour’s commitment to regulate workplace surveillance seems to be softening when it should be making good on these promises. The spread of “bossware” isn’t inevitable — now is the time to address the unique threats posed to workers’ rights by our increasingly digitalised society, before it’s too late.
Susannah Copson is legal and policy officer at Big Brother Watch