Rules on E-mail.....Any suggestions?

P

Polly Pure Bread

#1
The use of email at work gossip about rivals and flirt with colleagues. Company could be losing hours of work time because of misuse of email.

According to the study, gossiping about colleagues online was the second biggest waste of working time by men. Among women the biggest email abuse was ‘planning social life with friends’, followed by contacting brothers and sisters and gossiping about other staff. Other misuses of email include forwarding jokes to colleagues, and seeking new employment.

In this regard, my boss wants me to draft an email policy defining acceptable parameters for email usage.

Bellow is the policies I formulated:

- Nobody shall use office computers for personal emails.
- Nobody shall forward any chain letter.
- Never reply to a lengthy message by sending it back in its integrality only appending (e.g. 'I Agee') at its ultimateness.
(I’m still thinking of any other policies that encourage employees use technology in its proper context.)

Friends,
Please comment, suggest, add, improve, etc :thanx:
 
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Jim Wynne

Staff member
Admin
#2
The use of email at work gossip about rivals and flirt with colleagues. Company could be losing hours of work time because of misuse of email.

According to the study, gossiping about colleagues online was the second biggest waste of working time by men. Among women the biggest email abuse was ‘planning social life with friends’, followed by contacting brothers and sisters and gossiping about other staff. Other misuses of email include forwarding jokes to colleagues, and seeking new employment.

In this regard, my boss wants me to draft an email policy defining acceptable parameters for email usage.

Bellow is the policies I formulated:

- Nobody shall use office computers for personal emails.
- Nobody shall forward any chain letter.
- Never reply to a lengthy message by sending it back in its integrality only appending (e.g. 'I Agee') at its ultimateness.
(I’m still thinking of any other policies that encourage employees use technology in its proper context.)

Friends,
Please comment, suggest, add, improve, etc :thanx:
Do you have any actual evidence of email causing productivity problems? I wish everyone would stop forwarding bad jokes, urban legends and "cute" pictures, but it's not going to happen. Every once in a while there'll be a newspaper article telling about how some HR consulting firm has determined that Internet use is costing businesses millions of dollars in lost productivity, but there's never any actual evidence given. There should be policies regarding such things as pornography and messages that might be construed as discriminatory, hateful or otherwise stupid, but beyond that I don't see much point in throttling people.
Are people doing the work they're supposed to be doing? If they are, go find something else to prohibit. If they aren't, deal with that problem one-on-one. Punishing everyone for the transgressions of a few won't solve anything. Slackers will find a different way to slack.
 
P

Polly Pure Bread

#3
Do you have any actual evidence of email causing productivity problems?
No. I think the problem is the selfness of human nature. Before, they use telephone for their own personal calls and now they use official email for their own personal mail.
 
P

Polly Pure Bread

#5
In my experience, company policies are no match for human nature.

And before the telephone they wrote letters, and perhaps used company stamps to mail them.
Employees are not supposed to bring office supplies home, and neither should they use office computers for their own personal emails.

I wish everyone would stop forwarding bad jokes, urban legends and "cute" pictures, but it's not going to happen.


Maybe it’s not going to happen.

Technology is the main proponent for change in this world. It also has its downside indeed.

 

Pancho

wikineer
Super Moderator
#6
my boss wants me to draft an email policy defining acceptable parameters for email usage.
Here's a

------
Simple Sample Email Policy

This Policy governs employees’ and contractors’ use of email on the company’s computers and/or during your time at work for the company (Company Email).


  • Personal use of Company Email is permitted only in accordance with this policy.
  • Use of personal email software (hotmail, gmail, etc.) is prohibited at the office.
  • Using Company Email to search for a job, to work at another business, or to solicit for religious, political or other non-Company business is prohibited.
  • Company Email may be used to communicate with family only during breaks and outside of regular work hours.
  • The Company has the right to monitor all email transmitted via the Company’s server. Employees have no reasonable expectation of privacy. Any email transmitted over the Company’s server is Company Email, whether or not transmitted with a Company email account.
  • Offensive content is prohibited. Do not use email to transmit content that is harassing, discriminatory, menacing, threatening, obscene, defamatory, or in any way objectionable or offensive. Whether any content fits this description is determined solely by the Company at its discretion.
  • The following uses of email are prohibited: sending messages containing gossip, rumors, innuendo, sexually oriented material, and the sole intent of alarming, embarrass or negatively impacting productivity. Whether any content fits this description is determined solely by the Company at its discretion.
  • Email shall not be used to transmit Confidential Information to parties not required and authorized to receive it. Please refer to the Confidential Information Policy for more guidance.
  • Emails are Records. Please refer to the Record Control Procedure to determine how emails shall be controlled where applicable.

A violation of this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.

I have read the Company’s Email Policy and agree to abide by it. I understand that a violation of this policy may result in disciplinary action up to and including my termination.

Signed and Dated

-----

The above is based on our own policy, but I am not an attorney. Use at your own risk. Do not remove this tag under penalty of law. For your own policy, consult an attorney.



- Never reply to a lengthy message by sending it back in its integrality only appending (e.g. 'I Agee') at its ultimateness.
Do not use email for what a wiki is more useful.
 

Jim Wynne

Staff member
Admin
#7
Employees are not supposed to bring office supplies home, and neither should they use office computers for their own personal emails.
Employees are not supposed to take office supplies home, but they do. There's a difference between going home with a pen or pad of paper and wholesale theft, however. By the same token, there's a difference between someone surfing the net and not doing what he's supposed to be doing and sending an email message that has no effect on productivity.
 
P

Polly Pure Bread

#8
Employees are not supposed to take office supplies home, but they do. There's a difference between going home with a pen or pad of paper and wholesale theft, however. By the same token, there's a difference between someone surfing the net and not doing what he's supposed to be doing and sending an email message that has no effect on productivity.
I agree Jim a.k.a The Father of Positive RCA :agree1:
 
P

Polly Pure Bread

#9
Employees are not supposed to take office supplies home, but they do. There's a difference between going home with a pen or pad of paper and wholesale theft, however. By the same token, there's a difference between someone surfing the net and not doing what he's supposed to be doing and sending an email message that has no effect on productivity.
One last question. What about losing precious work hours as a result of email abuse? Isn’t it theft?
 
P

Polly Pure Bread

#10
Simple Sample Email Policy

This Policy governs employees’ and contractors’ use of email on the company’s computers and/or during your time at work for the company (Company Email).


  • Personal use of Company Email is permitted only in accordance with this policy.
  • Use of personal email software (hotmail, gmail, etc.) is prohibited at the office.
  • Using Company Email to search for a job, to work at another business, or to solicit for religious, political or other non-Company business is prohibited.
  • Company Email may be used to communicate with family only during breaks and outside of regular work hours.
  • The Company has the right to monitor all email transmitted via the Company’s server. Employees have no reasonable expectation of privacy. Any email transmitted over the Company’s server is Company Email, whether or not transmitted with a Company email account.
  • Offensive content is prohibited. Do not use email to transmit content that is harassing, discriminatory, menacing, threatening, obscene, defamatory, or in any way objectionable or offensive. Whether any content fits this description is determined solely by the Company at its discretion.
  • The following uses of email are prohibited: sending messages containing gossip, rumors, innuendo, sexually oriented material, and the sole intent of alarming, embarrass or negatively impacting productivity. Whether any content fits this description is determined solely by the Company at its discretion.
  • Email shall not be used to transmit Confidential Information to parties not required and authorized to receive it. Please refer to the Confidential Information Policy for more guidance.
  • Emails are Records. Please refer to the Record Control Procedure to determine how emails shall be controlled where applicable.
Hi Panchobook,

I find your sample email policy very fair. I hope it will be the answer to the problem of email abuse. One thumbs up! :agree1:
 
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