Let them surf!

Funnily enough there continues to be debate about employees surfing the internet during office hours. And there are still a lot of companies out there actively blocking employees from using various services on the internet from the company network.

Some claim that having such policies in place have an adverse effect on recruitment. I don’t agree. I think the bigger problem here is that by blocking behaviourial patterns, companies send a signal to their employees saying to them that the latter are not to be trusted. And THAT to me is a big problem.

Furthermore I am missing the debate on the quid pro quo here. So if a company bans me using some sites while at work, can I ban them asking me to do a tele conf in the evening or refuse to bring my Blackberry on vacation? Just asking.

Funnily enough companies are all for invading our privacies and blur the lines between work and spare time. But the other way? Noooo.

It’s an ancient attitude. Let them surf!