‘Dear XYZ employeesDate:
Optimal utilisation of telephone, electronic mail and internet facilities
- In order to ensure optimal, efficient and cost effective usage of XYZ’s telephone and e-facilities, certain measures need to be taken.
1.1.The purpose of this policy is to optimise the effectiveness of the company’s electronic and communication systems, to minimise damage to and abuse of our facilities and to eliminate unnecessary costs associated with telecommunication, Internet and email usage by staff.
- It is stressed that it is the duty of all email users to manage properly and continually the space utilisation of their business mailboxes. Under no circumstances will any business mailboxes that are not properly managed, be considered for expansion.
- In order to assist employees with their task of managing their mailbox space:
3.1.An online archiving facility will be made available to those employees with mailboxes. While employees will be able to use the archive to store deleted messages, access to this archive will be slower. It is stressed that this archive is not a dumping ground for redundant emails, but rather a storage place for messages that will be needed in future.
3.2.You are reminded you are required at all times to abide by all XYZ’s policies, procedures, disciplinary code and rules.
3.3.XYZ retains the right, at any time, to inspect all business and non-business mailboxes and to monitor, intercept, read or otherwise access emails, should it suspect that the mailbox is being used for any purposes, content or in any manner that may be:
3.3.1.illegal
3.3.2.contrary to XYZ’s interests, policy, procedures or rules
3.3.3.discriminatory or otherwise offensive
3.3.4.damaging to other persons (natural or legal) inside or outside of XYZ
3.3.5.related, directly or indirectly to any of the above listed items
3.4.XYZ also reserves the right to access all archived emails on an ongoing basis for the above stated purposes and for the reorganising and cleaning out the archive, in order to free up space.
3.5.Should an employee’s privacy allegedly be compromised in any manner or for any reason XYZ will not be liable in any way.
- Employees, trade union representatives/officials and other people are prohibited from using company computers, email, Internet, telephone, fax and other communication/electronic facilities unless:
4.1.the said facilities are used for the company’s business purposes (private usage of business facilities, without prior express permission from a duly authorised person, is prohibited), and
4.2.the user refrains from making potentially offensive, libellous, or otherwise damaging statements via these facilities, and
4.3.the company is not made potentially liable for any payment, service, product or other obligation that has not been duly authorised, and
4.4.the user spends only as much time on the system as is necessary and does not unnecessarily incur telecommunication costs, and
4.5.no offensive, illegal or otherwise potentially damaging material is received, accessed or downloaded, and
4.6.viruses are not brought into the system, and
4.7.all company policies and rules are adhered to by the user.
- We trust you appreciate the mutual benefit you and XYZ can derive from the abovementioned policy and that you will work with us in order to optimise such benefits.’