The computer age has changed the way we do business. File cabinets have been squeezed down into a hard drive. The knowledge in millions of books can be accessed on a single desktop computer. Letters have become obsolete through e-mail. With this advancement in technology comes the development of state-of-the-art monitoring equipment. Employees have recently started to examine their employees’ e-mail. It is morally acceptable for an employer to read his or her employees’ e-mail, because an employer must make sure his or her employees are working, not giving away sensitive information about the company and not causing harassing work environment.
One of the key aspects in business is productivity. If employees are not productive, output diminishes while costs for labor remain the same. The employer has the right to get what he or she pays for. Viewing employees’ e-mail shows the employer how much time is spent writing mail for business use or personal use. A study performed by the IRS found that “51% of employees’ online time is spent on non-business activities such as sending personal e-mails” (Internet Usage). A study by Vault.com showed that 32% of employees sent five to ten personal e-mail messages per day, and