One thing I like my job most is its loose working environment. The boss cares only one thing: to make things done. That is, as long as you make things done, you can enjoy a certain freedom. For example, we don’t need to punch in and out. Our access cards might keep a record of our arrival and leaving time, but no one ever considered pulling off the log to check. Off record, we are allowed to be late for work in a certain level. It’s understandable, for one thing, the company is located in a remote area, and many colleagues need hours to commute to the office--- and that is when the traffic allowed, but the traffic is always terrible; for another, it’s a sort of make-up for occasional overtimes. However, such golden time might have gone forever.

      Rumors said that according to New Employee Handbook, being late five times is serious enough for the company to send you a pink slip. I am usually the first to come to the office, but even pull off my log you might find more than 5 red records.

      Paging through New Employee Handbook, I found that new work attendance checking system is not even the worst. Behavior like chitchat or surfing the websites that non-relevant to work in office could earn you a warning letter, and if you download personal files (including MP3, Ebooks, software---anything for personal use) from the internet more than 50 times, you have committed a serious crime called "abuse use the internet' and the company would have the right to terminate your labor contract immediately. Besides that, it is forbidden to install or use any Messaging software like QQ, MSN, forbidden to connect any personal IT equipment (including mobile phone, music player, USB and etc) to the computer,  on and on many dozen-times-a-day actions have fallen into this NO-NO list. 

      By this standard, the company could fire any employee, from top management to bottom-line worker, without paying any compensation.

      No wonder rumor says that a large scale reduction is coming. I don’t believe that the company could play so low, after all it’s one of the world top 500, but I still feel uncomfortable and upset. No matter this handbook could be carried out or not, regular audits and frequent scanning of our computer and network would be done without even noticing. That means, sensitive detailed information about our credit cards, e-bank, multiple accounts and passwords would be exposed. Every move has been monitored and might be reported to company. It feels like being stripped naked in public, no privacy at all.

        I wonder, what’s the use for this handbook? To improve working efficiency? Does by forbidding this prohibiting that could create a highly effective workplace? Honestly, I doubt that. Actions might be monitored an restricted, but could any company has the way to prevent our minds wandering from work? An unhappy employee can hardly become a productive one and pushing too much always could cause the backfire.

        I might stop here or I would break another law: Hurt the company's images.