An Australian woman, Suzie Cheikho, recently made headlines as she lost her job with Insurance Australia Group (IAG) after 18 years of service. The company utilized keystroke technology to monitor her performance while working from home. This incident has raised questions about remote work monitoring and its implications for employees.
Suzie Cheikho was a consultant at IAG, responsible for tasks including creating insurance documents, adhering to regulatory timelines, and ensuring work-from-home compliance. Unfortunately, her journey came to an abrupt end in February of this year when she was dismissed due to various reasons, including missed deadlines, unattended meetings, and failing to complete a task that led to a regulatory fine.
Cheikho’s claim that her dismissal was influenced by her mental health issues was examined by the Fair Work Commission (FWC). However, the FWC’s investigation concluded that the termination was based on valid grounds of misconduct, rather than being linked to her mental health.
Her performance decline was apparent even before her dismissal. In November of the previous year, she received a formal warning about her low output and was put on a performance improvement plan. IAG decided to use keystroke technology to monitor her work over a 49-day period from October to December. The results of this monitoring were quite telling. Her keystroke activity was notably low, indicating that she was not engaged in her work as expected.
The data revealed that Ms. Cheikho frequently started work later than expected, finished earlier than she should have, and didn’t adhere to her assigned working hours. Shockingly, there were even days when she didn’t complete any work at all. On average, she typed only about 54 strokes per hour during this surveillance period. This data clearly indicated that she wasn’t fulfilling her work obligations properly.
The incident involving Suzie Cheikho is just one of many instances where remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic has posed challenges for companies and their employees. As businesses shifted to remote operations, monitoring employee performance became a concern. The lack of direct supervision raised questions about maintaining productivity and adherence to company standards.
Remote Work Monitoring: A Double-Edged Sword
The use of technology to monitor remote employees has become increasingly prevalent, but it’s a practice that presents both advantages and potential drawbacks. In the case of Suzie Cheikho, keystroke technology was employed to track her cyber activity over a specific period. The findings indicated that her keystroke activity was significantly low, and she frequently deviated from her designated working hours.
While such monitoring can help companies ensure accountability and maintain productivity, it also raises privacy concerns and may inadvertently impact employee well-being. Some employees might feel constant pressure to be ‘online’ or produce visible results to appease monitoring systems. Striking a balance between performance tracking and respecting employees’ boundaries is crucial.
Instances of Remote Work Firings
Cheikho’s case isn’t isolated – there have been other instances of employees facing termination due to remote work-related issues. For example, a US man working as a social media manager was fired for accidentally tweeting an inappropriate message from his company’s official account. Similarly, a UK woman was dismissed from her travel agent job after sharing a picture of herself on social media during sick leave, which contradicted her claim of being too ill to work.
