Is Big Brother watching? Maybe.(electronic employee surveillance)

Next time you call an old college friend from work, you better ask yourself whether your boss cares about that time you and your friend double-dated during finals week. It's quite possible that your conversation is being monitored.

In fact, nearly two thirds of companies surveyed by AMA engage in one or more surveillance practices. What's more, nearly a quarter of the companies that monitor their employees don't tell their employees.

Isn't this illegal? Don't workers have a right to privacy? In general, no. The only state in the U.S. that has any laws on the books protecting employee privacy is Connecticut. Anywhere else, it's the company's call. As Eric Rolfe Greenberg, AMA's director of management studies, notes, …