Reports suggest that Google is having a tough time bringing its employees back to the office despite operating in a hybrid model, that is, work-from-office thrice a week.

Reports suggest that Google is having a tough time bringing its employees back to the office despite operating in a hybrid model, that is, work-from-office thrice a week. As per CNBC reports, Google now plans to track employees' attendance and movement within the office, which might be factored in during performance reviews. As expected, the move is not going well with staffers. A few employees even told the publication that the company is treating staffers like "schoolchildren." An internal document obtained by CNBC draws attention to the attendance-tracking measure instated to help managers track "who hasn't been in the office frequently enough". Additionally, Google employees who previously received approval for remote operations will now have that status reevaluated. The CNBC report cites a Google spokesperson who noted the badge data collected is aggregated for company leaders. The spokesperson adds, "Now that we've fully transitioned to the hybrid work week, company leaders can see reports showing how their teams are adopting the hybrid work model." Google clarified that the company does not share or include individual badge data in its internal reports. The spokesperson also said the company was "limiting remote work to exception only." Also read | EU’s new antitrust charges to strike Google’s most successful ads model Why does Google want to switch to the work-from-office model? The report suggests that Google wants to make optimum use of its expansive offices, at least the ones in the US. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Google was known for its various on-campus perks for employees, including massages, yoga classes, and laundry services. However, several employee benefits were scrapped to cut down expenses amid macroeconomic tribulations Many Google workers also want to continue working remotely owing to the cost involved in relocation. Chris Schmidt, a Software engineer at Google and a member of the Alphabet Workers Union-CWA, questions Google's strict hybrid work policy as there are not enough desks for workers. Schmidt told CNBC, "New York City workers do not even have enough desks and conference rooms for workers to use comfortably." The report points out that Google’s process of providing lockers to let employees store personal items overnight is underway. Google suggests that its hybrid work has been in place for a year, and changes are bound to happen. Watch | Google’s Ads violate Antitrust laws, EU says It seems that companies across the tech industry are strugglling to get people back to office as many employees are struggling to follow up with the new policy. TCS is one of the companies that is asking its employees to come back to the office and work, but facing the same problem. WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

School-like rules? Google to track employee badges to ensure work from office: Report

In an era where everything can be digitally monitored, times are getting tough for those who misrepresent working hours even when working remotely. A woman in Canada has been ordered by a court to pay her employer USD 1841 for 'time theft'.&nbsp;

Karlee Besse worked remotely as an accountant for Reach CPA. She was given a company laptop. Her employer had installed a controversial tracking software Time Camp on the system.

Besse initially claimed that she was fired without any cause last year and had sued the company for it.

Reach CPA in turn showed the court that it “identified irregularities between her timesheets and the software usage logs”.

Time Camp software can track how long a particular document was open, how the employee used the document and logs work time.

Besse argued that the software had misinterpreted her use of the laptop for personal use and professional use.

The company, in turn, demonstrated that the software was capable of distinguishing professional work and use of the system for entertainment purposes such as streaming movies.

Besse claimed that she had printed the documents and worked on them. But the company showed that the software was able to log print commands and that work done on printed documents was required to be reported to the company which Besse did not.

The judge dismissed Besse's assertion of wrongful termination and ordered her to pay the company.

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In an era where everything can be digitally monitored, times are getting tough for those who misrepresent working hours even when working remotely. A woman in Canada has been ordered by a court to pay her employer USD 1841 for 'time theft'.

In an era where everything can be digitally monitored, times are getting tough for those who misrepresent working hours even when working remotely. A woman in Canada has been ordered by a court to pay her employer USD 1841 for 'time theft'. Karlee Besse worked remotely as an accountant for Reach CPA. She was given a company laptop. Her employer had installed a controversial tracking software Time Camp on the system. Besse initially claimed that she was fired without any cause last year and had sued the company for it. Reach CPA in turn showed the court that it “identified irregularities between her timesheets and the software usage logs”. Time Camp software can track how long a particular document was open, how the employee used the document and logs work time. Besse argued that the software had misinterpreted her use of the laptop for personal use and professional use. The company, in turn, demonstrated that the software was capable of distinguishing professional work and use of the system for entertainment purposes such as streaming movies. Besse claimed that she had printed the documents and worked on them. But the company showed that the software was able to log print commands and that work done on printed documents was required to be reported to the company which Besse did not. The judge dismissed Besse's assertion of wrongful termination and ordered her to pay the company. You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. WATCH WION LIVE HERE ×

Employee ordered to pay company after software catches 'time theft' 

China on Monday said that a major application used for tracking COVID-19 contacts will retire, a major move in the rapid turn away from its zero-tolerance Covid strategy.

The state-run application called "Communications Itinerary Card", which helps in tracking the people who have visited a high-risk area based on their mobile signal, will be offline from Tuesday midnight after remaining in operation for more than two years, as per an official post on WeChat.&nbsp;

The application was one of the important parts of the zero-Covid policy of China, in which millions of citizens were expected to add their mobile numbers and get their signature green arrow for entering events, or travelling between provinces.&nbsp;

ALSO READ|&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/global-economic-chiefs-hail-chinas-decision-of-relaxing-covid-19-restrictions-541573">Global economic chiefs hail China’s decision of relaxing COVID-19 restrictions</a>

The government took the decision days after it announced the end of mandatory quarantines and large-scale lockdowns, and introduced major relaxations in testing measures, taking a u-turn from its zero-Covid strategy.

According to officials, Covid cases have dropped below 10k after many weeks in China. However, Chinese health expert Zhong Nanshan on Sunday issued a warning regarding the rapid spread of the Omicron variant through the nation.&nbsp;

The Itinerary Card was first launched in 2020 and had an in-built four-tier system which assigned varied colours to its users predicting their level of exposure to the virus.&nbsp;

WATCH|&nbsp;

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The application went through multiple tweaks before its tracking period was shortened from 14 to 7 days this year. This is one of the many tracking apps which have been part of people's everyday life in China during the pandemic. 
However, the retirement of the Itinerary Card was hailed by users on social media, looking at the symbolism of China closing its central tracking app.

Various screenshots of people's “last” logins were shared on the social platform. On Weibo, similar to Twitter, one user wrote, “Bye bye, this announces the end of an era, and also welcomes a brand new one.”

"Goodbye itinerary card, concerts here I come," said another user. Some people also quizzed about the future of the application's large amount of data. "The Itinerary Card and other similar products mean vast amounts of personal information and private data. I hope there will be mechanisms and measures to log out and delete this,” a Weibo user wrote.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

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China on Monday said that a major application used for tracking COVID-19 contacts will retire, a major move in the rapid turn away from its zero-tolerance Covid strategy.

China on Monday said that a major application used for tracking COVID-19 contacts will retire, a major move in the rapid turn away from its zero-tolerance Covid strategy. The state-run application called "Communications Itinerary Card", which helps in tracking the people who have visited a high-risk area based on their mobile signal, will be offline from Tuesday midnight after remaining in operation for more than two years, as per an official post on WeChat. The application was one of the important parts of the zero-Covid policy of China, in which millions of citizens were expected to add their mobile numbers and get their signature green arrow for entering events, or travelling between provinces. ALSO READ| Global economic chiefs hail China’s decision of relaxing COVID-19 restrictions The government took the decision days after it announced the end of mandatory quarantines and large-scale lockdowns, and introduced major relaxations in testing measures, taking a u-turn from its zero-Covid strategy. According to officials, Covid cases have dropped below 10k after many weeks in China. However, Chinese health expert Zhong Nanshan on Sunday issued a warning regarding the rapid spread of the Omicron variant through the nation. The Itinerary Card was first launched in 2020 and had an in-built four-tier system which assigned varied colours to its users predicting their level of exposure to the virus. WATCH| The application went through multiple tweaks before its tracking period was shortened from 14 to 7 days this year. This is one of the many tracking apps which have been part of people's everyday life in China during the pandemic. However, the retirement of the Itinerary Card was hailed by users on social media, looking at the symbolism of China closing its central tracking app. Various screenshots of people's “last” logins were shared on the social platform. On Weibo, similar to Twitter, one user wrote, “Bye bye, this announces the end of an era, and also welcomes a brand new one.” "Goodbye itinerary card, concerts here I come," said another user. Some people also quizzed about the future of the application's large amount of data. "The Itinerary Card and other similar products mean vast amounts of personal information and private data. I hope there will be mechanisms and measures to log out and delete this,” a Weibo user wrote. (With inputs from agencies)

China retires app that tracked Covid contacts as part of easing virus rules

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