Be careful what you ask for in Denver — you just might get something a hell of a lot worse. Recently, a Denver TV station ran a story accusing some of the city’s public works employees of loafing on the job. The city’s reaction? Spend $1.5 million on a global-positioning system to constantly track city employees via satellite. (Yes, that’s in Denver, Colorado.)
The DENVER POST reports that, within the next few years, the city plans to install GPS devices on 2,000 vehicles in the Public Works Department. In addition, the city will require employees who are on assignment to call a central location when they are taking a break or going to lunch. “People who are paid for a full day need to be working a full day; otherwise, it’s unfair to hard-working employees and the taxpayers of Denver,” said a mayoral spokesperson.
Of course, there just might possibly be some privacy issues involved with using aerial spy cameras on people who earn their living pumping sewers and chucking garbage. “Do we want to infringe on the rights of all to catch a few scofflaws?” asks one Denver labor attorney.
