blocking out-of-office

[Jethro R Binks]

On Thu, 3 Aug 2006, Rick Chadderdon wrote:

> Jethro R Binks wrote:
> > Saying "personal mail is not 
> > permitted" isn't good enough unfortunately; regardless of whether it 
> > should be there or not, if it is there, it needs to be treated with 
> > respect.
> You think so?  I strongly disagree.

You can disagree all you like, but that's essentially what legislation 
says we must do (Human Rights Act, and the European legislation from which 
it derives).

> who nowadays doesn't know that a corporate account should not be used 
> for personal communication?

The people who have not been told that it shouldn't be used for such, and 
the people who have been told that it may be used for such.

And speaking personally, I find such rules oppressive and offensive.  
One's personal life doesn't end when one walks through the office door.  
This is the real world.  There are, of course, reasonable limits on how 
far 'personal use' should extend.  Most sane employers got over their 
hangup about use of telephones for personal use years ago, and set out the 
circumstances under which it may occur.  Email is little different.  It's 
about treating employees as human beings, not automatons.  As long as the 
corporate policies and procedures are in place, and everyone is well aware 
of the guidelines and boundaries, then there is little to fear.

Jethro.

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Jethro R Binks
Computing Officer, IT Services
University Of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK