Michelle Loughnan

So we see employers are increasingly looking at not just what employees do, but how their behaviour, particularly around device usage, is impacting things like GDPR and confidentiality, health and safety and workplace culture in general.

Can I challenge them on that?

So this will depend on the parameters of a policy.

You can't challenge them unless there's a policy in place.

You should be working, but it's a little bit more nuanced than that.

So exactly as Eoin said, working parents will need to be contacted during the day.

Employees who have dependents and are maybe caring for an elderly relative also need to be contacted during the working day.

But interestingly, some employees will also have medical needs.

If you suffer with diabetes, you might wear a monitor that's connected to an app on your phone to monitor real time glucose levels.

That app might need to be checked anywhere between four and ten times a day, depending on that person's medical needs.

And this is where a rigid ban or somebody being reprimanded in the workplace can become a little bit tricky and could potentially be discriminatory.

Exactly.

A clear policy, a fair reason and a bit of common sense.

This is not about control.

It's about safeguarding.

And that's a very interesting point.

And this is where this issue moves beyond a legal issue and becomes more about workplaces trying to manage what you might call a culture of constant connectivity.

And you don't have to look very far to see why

The art of conversation is dead on public transport in the morning time.

You go to a park on your day off and people are documenting their day by way of photograph or video.