Should work be paying for my mobile contract?
Discussion
Hi Guys,
Haven't posted in years but thought I would ask the question.
Should my employer be contributing/paying for my mobile phone contract if I am expected to to answer emails, make calls and use it as a hotspot when on meetings? Is it common practice that the employer should pay?
Cheers
Haven't posted in years but thought I would ask the question.
Should my employer be contributing/paying for my mobile phone contract if I am expected to to answer emails, make calls and use it as a hotspot when on meetings? Is it common practice that the employer should pay?
Cheers
10 years ago, maybe. But these days it's a given that pretty much everyone has a mobile with more minutes than you can ever use.
That said, if they expect you to use a lot of data as well, I think it would be reasonable for the employer to cover the additional expense here. I also think it is reasonable for your employer to provide a work phone for work.
I'm on my phone all the time for work and have only once claimed expenses for it (a month of many conference calls for 4+ hours at a time sent me over my contract). I could have a work phone but choose not to carry 2 phones around and either way I would feel under no obligation to answer calls/texts/emails outside work hours if I didn't want to.
That said, if they expect you to use a lot of data as well, I think it would be reasonable for the employer to cover the additional expense here. I also think it is reasonable for your employer to provide a work phone for work.
I'm on my phone all the time for work and have only once claimed expenses for it (a month of many conference calls for 4+ hours at a time sent me over my contract). I could have a work phone but choose not to carry 2 phones around and either way I would feel under no obligation to answer calls/texts/emails outside work hours if I didn't want to.
How big is the company? With the large companies (40,000+ staff) I've worked for, mobile phones are provided for those of a certain grade and above on the grounds that you're more likely to be out of the office attending meetings, seeing clients etc. Or they're provided if you have a specific need regardless of grade, for example you're out working out on site a lot.
I've also worked in companies with <10 people and whilst mobile phones were still used, they were not provided. Personally, i found it easier as it meant i only had to carry my personal phone and, as mentioned above, in a world of limitless calls / texts and near as dammit data (assuming you aren't using mobile streaming services for work) it made no difference financially. The only downside i could think of is it means giving your personal number to people you otherwise wouldn't.
Should a company provide one? In my personal opinion it's a case of being reasonable. I wouldn't have expected the small company i worked for to provide one as it would have been a waste of money in a cash-strapped business. Equally, in large companies where they buy them by the shedload at knockdown prices for thousands of employees, then why not?
In your case it sounds like you feel you should have one but don't. Could you make a reasonable case, such as incurring costs on behalf of the business that are leaving you out of pocket? Or if you're in a line of work where there is a reasonable chance of loss / theft / damage to your phone then the company should provide one.
If you can make a reasonable case to the company then yes, they should provide one. If they don't, it's just using your employees as a source of cash, which doesn't reflect well on them IMO.
I've also worked in companies with <10 people and whilst mobile phones were still used, they were not provided. Personally, i found it easier as it meant i only had to carry my personal phone and, as mentioned above, in a world of limitless calls / texts and near as dammit data (assuming you aren't using mobile streaming services for work) it made no difference financially. The only downside i could think of is it means giving your personal number to people you otherwise wouldn't.
Should a company provide one? In my personal opinion it's a case of being reasonable. I wouldn't have expected the small company i worked for to provide one as it would have been a waste of money in a cash-strapped business. Equally, in large companies where they buy them by the shedload at knockdown prices for thousands of employees, then why not?
In your case it sounds like you feel you should have one but don't. Could you make a reasonable case, such as incurring costs on behalf of the business that are leaving you out of pocket? Or if you're in a line of work where there is a reasonable chance of loss / theft / damage to your phone then the company should provide one.
If you can make a reasonable case to the company then yes, they should provide one. If they don't, it's just using your employees as a source of cash, which doesn't reflect well on them IMO.
warnerj said:
No one in the company except the owners have a work phone. Staff are all expected to use their own phone for work purposes.
The majority of people I know are provided a work phone so I just wanted to gauge peoples opinions.
Is it really expected? Or more one of those "well everyone does it" kinda things?The majority of people I know are provided a work phone so I just wanted to gauge peoples opinions.
Does your job require you out and about a lot thus requiring you to use a phone?
Does your job REALLY require you to pick up email on your phone? Or did you set it up yourself to pick up emails off your own back?
What does it say in your contract regarding mobile phones?
Is there an expense policy allowing you to claim back costs?
Also if you are going to customer meetings I am yet to find a customer without Wifi that I can use (and i attend probably two or three a week)
I'd be tempted to ask them what their analysis of the data protection risk is in having employees processing personal data on their own phones, what measures they have in place to cleanse data when an employee leaves...might focus on their minds on whether providing phones for employees is really such an expensive thing to do.
warnerj said:
No one in the company except the owners have a work phone. Staff are all expected to use their own phone for work purposes.
The majority of people I know are provided a work phone so I just wanted to gauge peoples opinions.
I don't have a phone provided by work - I avoid one, as it means I also avoid calls outside office hours due to time zone differences. The majority of people I know are provided a work phone so I just wanted to gauge peoples opinions.
I do use my phone for work from time to time, and where I do and I incur costs on top of my usual contract costs (use abroad, for example) I claim this on expenses. If they’re not willing to pay for extra costs you incur while using the phone, that seems a bit off. If they will pay, I don’t see a problem particularly, although it does mean people will have your number that may not otherwise...
Tight as hell to not provide one or offer a reasonable payment for an employee to use their own mobile. Do they make you bring in your own toilet paper too? After all, you must have plenty at home...
Personally, if a mobile number is going to go on business cards, or be published for any wider circulation than my immediate team, it had better be a company one - in a phone that gets switched off when I'm not required to answer it.
Personally, if a mobile number is going to go on business cards, or be published for any wider circulation than my immediate team, it had better be a company one - in a phone that gets switched off when I'm not required to answer it.
Europa1 said:
I'd be tempted to ask them what their analysis of the data protection risk is in having employees processing personal data on their own phones, what measures they have in place to cleanse data when an employee leaves...might focus on their minds on whether providing phones for employees is really such an expensive thing to do.
As the data would be personal then no risk however I see what you were really asking. Actually DLP is really the issue at hand, 99% of corporate email accounts can be wiped remotely. Attachments saved to the device, not so much. Thanks guys for the replies.
I do work in sales and I go on 4/5 meetings a week. Everyone in the company especially senior people within the company are expected to answer emails after hours. it has become the done thing and is frowned upon if you don't.
A lot of my clients due have my personal number though which is annoying when they call you when you're off or busy.
The annoyance is more I am happy for me to use my personal phone but I would want a contribution to the overall bill.
I do work in sales and I go on 4/5 meetings a week. Everyone in the company especially senior people within the company are expected to answer emails after hours. it has become the done thing and is frowned upon if you don't.
A lot of my clients due have my personal number though which is annoying when they call you when you're off or busy.
The annoyance is more I am happy for me to use my personal phone but I would want a contribution to the overall bill.
geeks said:
Europa1 said:
I'd be tempted to ask them what their analysis of the data protection risk is in having employees processing personal data on their own phones, what measures they have in place to cleanse data when an employee leaves...might focus on their minds on whether providing phones for employees is really such an expensive thing to do.
As the data would be personal then no risk however I see what you were really asking. Actually DLP is really the issue at hand, 99% of corporate email accounts can be wiped remotely. Attachments saved to the device, not so much. Europa1 said:
geeks said:
Europa1 said:
I'd be tempted to ask them what their analysis of the data protection risk is in having employees processing personal data on their own phones, what measures they have in place to cleanse data when an employee leaves...might focus on their minds on whether providing phones for employees is really such an expensive thing to do.
As the data would be personal then no risk however I see what you were really asking. Actually DLP is really the issue at hand, 99% of corporate email accounts can be wiped remotely. Attachments saved to the device, not so much. Be aware that HMRC are cracking down on this practice as it is a benefit in kind (just had a discussion with new employer over this where they are moving to supplying phones against using your own and claiming back.)
If I were you I would get a sim only cheap deal and use that as a company phone that way you can switch it off.
Interesting you say they expect you to answer emails at all times as I find more and more companies are going the other way and trying to separate work from home life
If I were you I would get a sim only cheap deal and use that as a company phone that way you can switch it off.
Interesting you say they expect you to answer emails at all times as I find more and more companies are going the other way and trying to separate work from home life
geeks said:
Europa1 said:
geeks said:
Europa1 said:
I'd be tempted to ask them what their analysis of the data protection risk is in having employees processing personal data on their own phones, what measures they have in place to cleanse data when an employee leaves...might focus on their minds on whether providing phones for employees is really such an expensive thing to do.
As the data would be personal then no risk however I see what you were really asking. Actually DLP is really the issue at hand, 99% of corporate email accounts can be wiped remotely. Attachments saved to the device, not so much. Europa1 said:
geeks said:
Europa1 said:
geeks said:
Europa1 said:
I'd be tempted to ask them what their analysis of the data protection risk is in having employees processing personal data on their own phones, what measures they have in place to cleanse data when an employee leaves...might focus on their minds on whether providing phones for employees is really such an expensive thing to do.
As the data would be personal then no risk however I see what you were really asking. Actually DLP is really the issue at hand, 99% of corporate email accounts can be wiped remotely. Attachments saved to the device, not so much. A personal device with personal data not touching an employers network is of zero concern, personal data is just that, personal data and neither the ICO nor your employer should be concerning themselves with it.
A BYOD device with corporate data passing through it is of concern, which is why people like me are employed as consultants to deploy EMM software and discuss strategy around securing the enterprise.
What you are discussing is a separate type of personal data not relevant to what the OP is asking, you are discussing personal data in terms of a persons name or address etc, i.e data that is personal to an individual. The ICO is rightly concerned about this data and info but only in terms of things such as (not an exhaustive list) data at rest, who has access and should they, is it on paper or is it electronic etc. This would be a concern on the device of course, but employers would not label this as personal data in terms of managing it as it would be delineated as Corporate Data on a Personal device and managed in an appropriate way (i.e through the use of EMM products and containers)
Trying to smush the DPA into this probably isn't very productive, also pushing the DPA into an employers face when you want them to provide you with something probably won't sell it to them either!
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