Can i sack someone for excessive internet usage

Alecz

The sites visited were shopping sites , fashion etc . But it was used most of the day and throughout the day . I checked the browsing history over the last 3 months . Its a disgrace . There is no way that she could have been productive . Some days she is on it continuously all day with 500-600 hits .

I dont see why i should let her stay. Why does the employee have all teh rights .

The question is, is it ok for me to check the person net access in this way. Checking the net there are conflicting opininons regarding privacy at work but is seems an employer can monitor internet access emails etc at work if he thinks something is not right .

Torry_Quine

Alecz wrote: »

The sites visited were shopping sites , fashion etc . But it was used most of the day and throughout the day . I checked the browsing history over the last 3 months . Its a disgrace . There is no way that she could have been productive . Some days she is on it continuously all day with 500-600 hits .

I dont see why i should let her stay. Why does the employee have all teh rights .

The question is, is it ok for me to check the person net access in this way. Checking the net there are conflicting opininons regarding privacy at work but is seems an employer can monitor internet access emails etc at work if he thinks something is not right .

To me that shows an employee who is abusing the trust of her employer. I think that is totally unacceptable behaviour.

Others though will say if there is nothing written down then how could she know her behaviour is wrong which to me is ridiculous.

I hope that you manage to resolve this and get a written policy in place so that you aren't in this position again.

yvonne13_2

Why did it take so long to notice what was going on?

yvonne13_2

Alecz wrote: »

The sites visited were shopping sites , fashion etc . But it was used most of the day and throughout the day . I checked the browsing history over the last 3 months . Its a disgrace . There is no way that she could have been productive . Some days she is on it continuously all day with 500-600 hits .

I dont see why i should let her stay. Why does the employee have all teh rights .

The question is, is it ok for me to check the person net access in this way. Checking the net there are conflicting opininons regarding privacy at work but is seems an employer can monitor internet access emails etc at work if he thinks something is not right .

I think you can check emails well company email accounts as you set them without any restrictions

scheming_gypsy

Alecz wrote: »

The sites visited were shopping sites , fashion etc . But it was used most of the day and throughout the day . I checked the browsing history over the last 3 months . Its a disgrace . There is no way that she could have been productive . Some days she is on it continuously all day with 500-600 hits .

which browsing history? the on one the PC or on server logs?
and 500 - 600 hits? how many legitimate hits that you can pull her on rather than links to websites she's visited?

I dont see why i should let her stay. Why does the employee have all teh rights .

maybe because you didn't put a policy in place..
Do you have anything in the contract, policies or staff hand book that states what's classed as gross misconduct?

The question is, is it ok for me to check the person net access in this way. Checking the net there are conflicting opininons regarding privacy at work but is seems an employer can monitor internet access emails etc at work if he thinks something is not right .

if you check it properly and just checking browsing history doesn't tell you much. You really need to have a proper internet set up with a web / proxy server where you can monitor internet access properly.
Do you have a locked PC policy or have you given her the tools to argue that somebody else must have used her PC while she was somewhere else?

scheming_gypsy

yvonne13 wrote: »

I think you can check emails well company email accounts as you set them without any restrictions

although, as far as i'm aware, if it's marked as private you're not allowed to read it and as soon as it becomes apparent it's private you have to stop reading.
but again i think you have to set a policy that states users can't use mail for personal use or at least stipulate what's acceptable.

yvonne13_2

If employer's intends to monitor emails or internet use, they should inform you.

The policy should set out clearly the circumstances in which you may or may not use work email and internet for private communications;
make clear the extent and type of private use that is allowed;
explain why the employer is monitoring emails, the extent of the monitoring, and the means used;
outline how the policy is enforced and the penalties you can expect if you breach the policy;
inform you of the extent to which information about your internet access and emails is retained in the system and for how long.
Provided you receive adequate notice, your employer may implement a blanket ban on using the internet or email for non-work related purposes

Hootie19

Hammyman wrote: »

I can only assume that these comments about it being OK to use the internet for personal use when you are supposed to be working are from the public sector.

Why?? I work in the public sector and we are definitely NOT allowed to while our time away on the internet! We're too busy for a start, and the IT useage policy is stringent to say the least!

yvonne13_2

scheming_gypsy wrote: »

although, as far as i'm aware, if it's marked as private you're not allowed to read it and as soon as it becomes apparent it's private you have to stop reading.
but again i think you have to set a policy that states users can't use mail for personal use or at least stipulate what's acceptable.

I think if you forward on a private email it can be read. I rememberer something similar being questioned a couple of years ago

Sambucus_Nigra

Torry_Quine wrote: »

To me that shows an employee who is abusing the trust of her employer. I think that is totally unacceptable behaviour.

Others though will say if there is nothing written down then how could she know her behaviour is wrong which to me is ridiculous.

I hope that you manage to resolve this and get a written policy in place so that you aren't in this position again.

To me that shows a manager that can't manage. As soon as it was apparent, the employee should have been pulled up on it - not allowed to carry on.