A woman claims her employer wrongfully fired and retaliated against her for deleting a location-tracking app from her company-issued iPhone, and she’s taking her case to court.
Myrna Arias, formerly of money-transfer company Intermex, took issue with how the bosses were using productivity software Xora, which includes GPS tracking to monitor and optimize business travel. She claims that her higher-ups were using the data to keep tabs on her and coworkers even during off hours and that they terminated her shortly after she removed the offending app.
According to court documents, Arias “expressed that she had no problem with the app’s GPS function during work hours, but she objected to the monitoring of her location during non-work hours and complained [. . .] that this was an invasion of her privacy.” Within a few weeks of this complaint, Arias deleted Xora, and Intermex fired her shortly thereafter.
The document further claims that Arias’ supervisor, John Stubits, “bragged that he knew how fast she was driving at specific moments ever since she had installed the app on her phone” and that after firing Arias, Stubits convinced her other employer, NetSpend, to terminate her as well. Arias had requested at her time of hire with Intermex that she be allowed to stay on at the other company to avoid a gap in her benefits coverage.
While it makes sense for a company to insist that employees using the phones that they provide them conform to certain usage conditions like keeping them on at all times in case of work-related emergency, no legal reason exists to justify their tracking workers on their own time. Stubits even admitted as much but claimed that Arias should “tolerate the illegal intrusion because [Intermex] was paying [her] more than NetSpend,” according to the complaint.
Arias is seeking damages in excess of $500,000.
Via: The Hill
Evan Killham is a freelance writer who lives in Nebraska and isn’t interested in football, so he has plenty of time to play and think about video games. He has written for Bitmob and GamesBeat and sometimes, he even goes outside. But not too often because he’s heard there are bees out there. Occasionally, companies send free units for review. Evan subscribes to Cult of Mac’s Reviews Policy and also does not keep the items he receives for possible coverage.
9 responses to “Terminated worker fires back at company’s 24/7 monitoring”
As a company’s cell phone she surely deserved what she got. Violating the terms of use of a cell phone will do this to you. It’s like getting a company car and then wondering why they’re mad if you decide to paint in fluorescent pink.
If she was really that worried about it, just throw the phone on airplane mode after work hours and get herself her own personal cell phone.
My work has generously offered to pay half of my personal cell phone’s monthly rate because I use it so often while emailing and keeping on track of work orders with clients. I respectfully declined to have my phone subsidized, this phone is my phone, if they want to track me during work hours, I’d gladly use a work phone. But you can for sure bet that it would go in to airplane mode the second I’m off shift.
Absolutely, when you work for a corporation you better follow the rules no matter what they are, you have no choice. Even if your masters are watching every move you make during off hours ( off hours, that’s funny too). You are office equipment, no more, no less. Better act like it or your money and benefits are gone and you are out on the streets.
Are you kidding? Your comparison is rididulous. There is no justification for tracking someone 24/7 when they are not at work even if you have a company phone.
Employees are not slaves.
I’m going out on a limb here and guessing that you’re one of those who have sworn that the Apple app “find my friends” will never be installed on your iPhone. I do have it installed, and I have everyone from my spouse to my family to friends on it, and they have me on theirs.
Your response to my initial post is almost exactly what everyone says to me when I talk to them about the FMF app, (just to recap: “omfg, are you crazy??!? I don’t want someone knowing where I am at all times!!!”) And sorry to burst your bubble but I don’t have friends/family showing up at my doorstep or walking in to the same restaurant as me doing the ol’ “oh my, what a coincidence” routine. To the best of my memory that has actually never happened. Ever. Like since the app has been released I have never experienced that.
So that same should be for company supplied gadgets and materials, those gadgets and materials are owned by the company and as am employee who is using the benefit of using a company device, you must adhere by the terms of their conditions. I am willing to bet that your boss, my boss, his boss, her boss, has about a million better things to do than to have FMF or their tracking app open 24/7 and following your ‘blip’ everywhere you go.
However, when you are on company time, you are being paid to work, if you’re off dodging work you are effectively stealing from the company in the form of time. So this is why I see nothing wrong with tracking apps on company supplied devices and stand by my original argument of: “once you’re off company time, turn on airplane mode, switch to your personal device, and carry on”
Good, I hope she gets the $500K, but we all know who’s in charge so she’ll get nothing. We need a new supplemental bill of rights is what we fuckin need.
I hope she wins and gets a lot more than 500K to teach these slimy bastards a lesson.
An asshole like me would have taped the phone underneath a cab or on a train.
She should have left the phone at work, locked in her desk/filing cabinet/locker when she was done for the day and used her personal phone after working hours. But seriously, I’d have told him to stuff his tracking app too, and her immediate supervisor should be fired for abusing the tracking feature. He was obviously stalking her.
This is the most sickening thing I’ve read in awhile.
When are we all going to realize that these gadgets are turning us into modern slaves.
I hope this woman wins her case and sets a precedent.