Boss is aWare—Are you? Employee Comprehension and Legal Awareness of Workplace Monitoring

Bossware, software that monitors worker activity, is a common feature of workplaces. What do workers know about these tools and how they relate to their rights at work? We explored this question through two studies. Study 1 surveyed 100 workers to assess their understanding of work monitoring terminology. Participants were confident in their knowledge of key terms but struggled to accurately define them. Study 2 explored awareness of legal protection in relation to work monitoring through 19 semi-structured online interviews. We found that awareness varied with industry and work role, but was generally low and lacked certainty. Participants were largely skeptical of the use of bossware, questioning its necessity. Limited knowledge of monitoring terminology and legal protection at work further weakens workers' ability to notice and challenge the use of monitoring tools in their workplaces. We finish by speculating on whether educating workers about bossware and workplace rights would help.