Warning over Blackberry timewasting
BRITISH bosses are banning Blackberries and other smart-phones over fears they cost more in lost productivity than they gain, according to employment law experts.
Employers initially rushed to buy smartphones for staff as they allow users to send and receive emails when away from the office – keeping them in contact at all hours.
But bosses are now beginning to turn their backs on the devices, including Apple’s iPhone, for fear that the amount of time staff waste on them when they should be working far outweighs the benefits of 24 hour access to e-mails.
Peter Mooney, of Employment Law Advisory Services, said the curse of the “Crackberry” – so named for its addictive quality – started a run earlier this year on employers looking to downgrade their staff’s company mobiles. Many worried the change might constitute a change in their remuneration package.
He said: “What started as a trickle is certainly building up to a stream as more and more employers start looking at what they really need from their employers.”
The distraction of social networking sites and internet shopping were among the drawbacks, he said.