The issue of personal privacy has become central to the expanding use of smartphones at workplaces. With the introduction of special apps that use global positioning systems (GPS), companies are able to monitor where their employees are and, increasingly, know what they are doing.
The ability of employers to monitor employees has taken a technological step toward greater control that is not a positive one for Japanese workplaces.
The issue has already reached the courts. A recent lawsuit filed by an employee of a construction company cited psychological damage because he was forced to carry the company's mobile phone at all times. The Tokyo District Court ruled that it is legal for the company to require the employee to carry the phone during working hours, but not during off-duty time.