HALF of workers do not know what data their boss collects about them, a new study suggests.
A survey of more than 7,500 workers by the trade union Prospect found that 48 per cent were not confident they knew what details their employer held about them.
A third said they were not sure that this data would be used in an appropriate way.
Prospect said its findings come at a time when anxiety about data collection and use is growing, with workplaces set to become an increasingly important frontier in the battle for control over personal information.
In addition to digitally-held personal data used for recruitment, this may now include data gathered through technologies such as location tracking, keystroke monitoring, audio recording, CCTV, or wearable devices such as Fitbits, said Prospect.
"Such data is playing an increasing role in how employers recruit, manage, or reward their workforces.
"Often this can lack transparency or accountability, increasing the risk of ill-founded, unfair or discriminatory decision-making," said a report by the union.
Prospect general secretary Mike Clancy said: "The next wave of technological change at work has the potential to make work much better for millions of us, but it simply won't work if workers don't trust their bosses with their data.
"Employers need to be far more transparent about what data they are collecting on their workforce and how it is being used.
"We cannot sleepwalk into a situation where your boss can track your location on your work phone without you having any idea.
"If the Government are serious about improving productivity through technology, then we need safeguards to make sure the we have the new rights to match the new world of work. This must include empowering the collective voice of workers to influence change in the workplace."
Prospect said there should be commitments on employers' collection and use of staff data in employment contracts.
