Chapter 6: Wearables in the Workplace: An Analysis of Ethical Issues

Wearables are mini-computers and sensors near, on, or in the body (e.g., smart phones, watches, implants), enabling mobility, connectivity, and applications that can encourage or compromise engagement and collaboration (Vaze, 2014).¹ Many of these devices offer anytime-anywhere access and have the ability to record, track, interpret, report, and store a wide array of behavioral, medical, and cognitive data. The expanding use of wearables is attributed to technical advances in data analytics, micro-electro-mechanical systems, robotics, biometrics, neuroscience, nanotechnology, and integrated optics (Ajunwa, Crawford, & Schultz, 2017).²

One in five people in the United States own a personal wearable and one in ten use it on a daily basis (Ubiq Team, 2015). With fitness devices leading the way, over ten percent of American organizations issue them, and eight percent are considering adoption (Brin, 2016). Employers can now outfit employees with body-worn instruments that measure brain activity, document moods and movements, and analyze voice, facial expressions, and posture. The objective is to optimize performance and productivity in personnel and organizations by integrating smart technology with work. Some three-fourths of workers around the world say they are willing to try wearable tools if they help them do their jobs (Kronos, Inc., 2014). By 2018, two million employees worldwide likely will be required to wear such equipment as a condition of employment (Gartner, Inc., 2015; Manokha, 2017).