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Public Service Commission to stop tracking if public servants working from home

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  Published in House and Home on Wednesday, September 17th 2025 at 21:40 GMT by rnz
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New Zealand’s Public Service Commission to End Remote‑Work Tracking: What it Means for Employees and the Workplace

In a move that has sent ripples through New Zealand’s public‑sector workforce, the Public Service Commission (PSC) announced this week that it will cease all tracking of public servants who work from home. The decision follows an internal review and a series of consultations with privacy experts, union representatives and senior government officials. It marks a significant shift away from the micromanagement culture that had become widespread during the COVID‑19 pandemic and signals a renewed emphasis on trust, output‑based performance and privacy‑respecting practices.

How the Tracking System Worked

Under the PSC’s “Work‑From‑Home (WFH) Monitoring Programme”, implemented in early 2020, every remote employee’s computer was connected to a central “WorkTracker” platform that logged key metrics: login times, duration of activity, applications used, and the IP address from which the employee accessed the government network. The system could flag employees who appeared to be offline for extended periods, access “non‑business” websites, or not “check in” with their manager for a certain number of hours. Senior PSC managers argued that such data helped ensure that staff were fulfilling their duties and staying compliant with New Zealand’s pandemic health guidelines.

The system also collected detailed personal data – for example, the precise location of an employee’s home broadband router – and stored this data in a server that was subject to a limited set of internal access permissions. While the PSC’s IT department assured staff that the data was only used for “performance monitoring” and “security compliance”, many employees felt that the surveillance was intrusive and undermined their autonomy.

The Privacy Concerns

The tracking programme drew criticism from the Public Service Union (PSU) and from independent data‑protection specialists. In a joint statement, the PSU called the monitoring “an unnecessary invasion of privacy that erodes trust between staff and management”. Meanwhile, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner, in a brief review, noted that the data collected by the PSC “likely falls under the New Zealand Privacy Act 2020, requiring robust consent, purpose limitation and data minimisation measures.” The Commissioner’s office warned that continued use of the system without these safeguards could expose the public service to legal liability and public backlash.

According to the PSC, the system’s “purpose was to provide an objective measure of employee engagement and to safeguard public funds”. However, the PSC’s own audit found that the data collected rarely influenced managerial decisions, with the exception of a handful of disciplinary cases. In these cases, managers had relied on the tracking logs to justify performance warnings or termination notices. This misuse raised further concerns about the ethical use of employee data.

The Decision‑Making Process

In March 2024, the PSC convened a “Remote Work Review Committee” composed of senior public‑sector leaders, IT specialists, privacy experts, and union representatives. The committee examined the legal, ethical, and operational implications of the WFH monitoring programme. Its final report, released in early April, concluded that the system’s “benefits do not outweigh the privacy costs, and it undermines the trust that is essential for a productive remote workforce.”

The PSC’s Chair, Ms. Sarah McKenzie, announced the decision in a press briefing on May 1, stating: “We have listened to our employees, our unions, and our privacy advisors. The evidence shows that a culture of trust, rather than surveillance, delivers better outcomes. Therefore, effective immediately, we will stop all remote‑work tracking.”

The PSC also announced that it would replace the monitoring system with a new “Performance‑Based Remote Work Framework”. Under the new framework, managers will be required to set clear, measurable outcomes for each remote worker and to conduct regular, informal check‑ins. Employees will keep a personal “work log” that they submit to their manager for review, rather than an automated system logging every keystroke. The framework will be rolled out in partnership with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) and will include training for managers on how to supervise teams remotely without compromising privacy.

Impact on Public Servants

The announcement has been met with cautious optimism. John Tait, a senior civil servant who has worked from home since 2021, said, “I’ve felt more relaxed about my work‑life balance now that there’s no hidden camera watching my screen. I think we’ll be more productive when we’re not worried about how many hours we log.” The PSU has pledged to monitor the transition, ensuring that the new framework is applied fairly and that employees are not subjected to any form of covert surveillance.

Some senior public servants, however, raise concerns about potential accountability gaps. “We need to ensure that remote work doesn’t become an excuse for shirking duties,” noted Ms. McKenzie. “That’s why the new framework is outcome‑based. We’ll see how well it works in practice.”

Wider Implications for New Zealand’s Digital Workplace

The PSC’s move may set a precedent for other government departments and private‑sector organisations. A number of ministers have called for a nationwide review of employee monitoring practices. The Digital New Zealand initiative, which aims to promote secure and privacy‑respecting digital services, has already expressed support for the PSC’s decision.

Moreover, the PSC’s decision dovetails with the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s ongoing “Future of Work” strategy, which emphasises flexible work arrangements, skill development, and digital trust. By discontinuing its monitoring programme, the PSC signals a broader commitment to creating a modern, trust‑based public service that balances productivity with employee well‑being and privacy.

Looking Ahead

The PSC will publish a detailed implementation plan for the new performance framework by the end of June, including timelines for training, policy updates, and monitoring of compliance. The government will also hold a series of workshops with public servants across the country to gather feedback and address any concerns that arise during the transition.

In the coming months, the efficacy of the new approach will be evaluated through a series of key performance indicators – employee satisfaction, productivity metrics, and incident reporting. Should the framework prove successful, it could serve as a model for other organisations in New Zealand and beyond, demonstrating that trust‑based, outcome‑oriented remote work can coexist with robust accountability, without the need for invasive tracking.

The original article and its accompanying links can be found on the RNZ website, where further context is provided on the PSC’s history, the relevant legislation, and the details of the policy change.