Those of us who are still lucky enough to have jobs are grateful for them; however, more and more those jobs are extending into our "off" hours. We're expected to field emails at night, check in during vacations, or work over the weekend. It's technology, of course, that's to blame. Hard to say no to the boss when you've got a smartphone and can easily get back on a query or request wherever you might be.

And now Google has introduced a tracker for businesses, called Maps Coordinate, that is like your boss gone wild. The Google maps feature can track an employee anywhere, anytime. Spent 10 minutes in a coworker's cubicle? The tracker knows. Went outside to get some fresh air? The tracker knows. Bathroom break? Sure enough, the tracker knows. Nosy tracker!

I do believe that if you're on work time, you should be working. But let's be realistic. Work hours have gotten longer and longer. And we're not machines. Occasionally we need to power down, refresh, maybe even, horrors, chat with a coworker about last night's Dancing With the Stars. As long as we're getting our work done, and getting it done on time, what's the problem if we take a few minutes to ourselves?

Even a CEO thinks this is all too much. Said Jack Emmert, chief executive of an online gaming company:

How perfectly horrible. You could track who is stopping by who’s cubicles? That’s H.R. gone mad. You should worry about what people are producing, not where they produce it.

Amen. Isn't this beginning to sound a little (okay, a lot) like stalking? Google says that workers can turn off the tracker when they're off hours. But please! You know once the boss gets the tracker in your phone, he or she is gonna be all, "Keep that thing on! Hey, why'd you turn that off?"

Granted, the tracker could work well for certain types of jobs: Delivery men, for instance. If you're delivering a bunch of cash to banks, it could be a good thing to have your employer tracking you, just in case trouble comes your way.

But for your average office drone? Just another way to feel like a slave rather than an employee.

Would you agree to let your employer track all your moves?

 

Image via Telendro/Flickr