Workplace Surveillance Is The New Office ‘Perk’

‘The snack machine wants to scan Alice’s fingerprints.
Alice — not her real name — would prefer not to surrender her biometric data just to get a candy bar, but it’s the preferred option in the break room. She could input a personal code, instead, but either way everything she orders from the machine will be tracked. She’s not sure exactly where the data goes — or what it will be used for.
Maybe snack-tracking isn’t such a big deal, considering that all her colleagues are wearing Fitbits — their data automatically sent to a third-party company contracted by her employer. Or considering that once a year, they’re required have a full blood workup, through yet another third party. If Alice opts out, her health insurance gets more expensive. She isn’t sure where that data goes either, or even if it’s shared with her employer.
“Everything seems like a black box,” she said. “I’m mostly just confused, because nobody seems to bat an eyelash. Everyone signs up for the blood tests and a significant portion are walking around with fitness trackers.”’
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