Guide for Creating a Driver Monitoring Policy

How to Create a Driver Monitoring Policy to Avoid Employee Resistance

Organizations now have access to a wide range of employee monitoring tools to track performance and streamline operations. While these tools have proven to significantly improve operations, they occasionally face resistance by employees. GPS fleet tracking technology is one such tool that has the potential to cause an adverse reaction by some employees if not implemented properly. The primary concern voiced by some employees is the feeling that “big brother” will be watching their every move. This broad statement is typically based on a lack of knowledge of the technology and how it will be used by management. Our driver monitoring policy guide will help ensure a smooth rollout of your system with minimum resistance.

We researched how such tools were implemented by best-in-class companies. We wanted to get a sense of which elements should be included in a company’s driver monitoring policy to minimize a negative reaction by employees. In 2002, the U.S. General Accounting Office conducted a study of employee monitoring practices by 14 Fortune 1000 companies in the U.S. While this study was oriented toward computer usage monitoring, the results also apply to GPS fleet tracking technology. We found that the most important first step in implementation was creating a policy regarding the use of the electronic monitoring system.

Many of the items below were included in the policies of the surveyed companies:

They provided a notice to all employees notifying them of the company’s electronic monitoring practices.
They provided a general description of how the electronic employee monitoring system worked and what data is collected.
The policies always affirmed the company’s right to review employee use of company assets.
The policies state that employees have no expectation of privacy while utilizing company assets.
They described the appropriate use of company assets.
They described detailed penalties for misuse of company assets.
They describe the goals & objectives for implementation of the system.
They included restrictions on the disclosure of personal data to others outside of the company without the employee’s consent.
They explained that data should be collected and used lawfully and fairly.
They explained that data is collected for the activities of all employees in a similar capacity to avoid the perception of discrimination.
They described who has access to the data and what safeguards are in place to ensure that non-authorized people cannot access the data.
They described the frequency of the employee monitoring data review or whether data will only be reviewed as part of an internal investigation.
They described which managers can access the data to complete internal investigations.

Key Elements of a Successful Driver Monitoring Policy

Policy Element	Type of Statement
Monitoring use of proprietary assets	Statements that company assets are provided as tools for the business and all activities related to the use of these assets are subject to monitoring, auditing, or review.
Establishing no expectation of privacy	Statements about the extent or limitations of privacy protections for employees while utilizing company assets.
Improper employee use	Statements that some uses of company assets are inappropriate including notices banning specific activities (e.g., use of assets for personal benefit, traveling with non-insured passengers, excessive speeding, idling, etc.
Allowable employee use	Statements explaining proper or acceptable uses of the company assets, including whether or not personal use is permitted.
Disciplinary action	Statements regarding penalties and disciplinary actions for violations of the company usage policy.
Employee acknowledgement of policy	A statement requiring that employees demonstrate they understand the company policy and acknowledge their responsibility to adhere to the policy.

Other practices by some of the surveyed companies:

Some created employee groups to participate in the formulation and review of the employee monitoring policies.
Some gave employees access to any information collected on their electronic transmissions.
Some precluded the employer’s review of employee electronic transmissions except when they had a reasonable independent determination of inappropriate use.
Some gave employees the right to review, dispute, and delete inaccurate data.

Our research gave us interesting insight into the proper implementation of a GPS fleet tracking system. The first and most important step is to create a driver monitoring policy regarding the usage of the data. It is also helpful to include items within the policy based on your desired levels of transparency, accountability and data security.

Each organization is unique, so they included or excluded the necessary items based on their judgment of the proper fit within their companies. Finally, they ensured that the policy was properly communicated to all impacted employees.

Download The Driver Policy Guide