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FINGERPRINTS STAFF VICTORY
Controversial ‘Orwellian’ council staff scanners are scrapped
CONTROVERSIAL fingerprinting scanners that were branded “Orwellian” by staff will be removed from a council department following a blitz of criticism.
The U-turn has been celebrated by union members, who fought a dogged campaign against the biometric scanners, refusing to give up their fingerprints after the machines were installed in the Community Protection Department at the end of August.
The scanners were brought in without consultation to monitor staff working hours, but were never turned on.
Westminster Council is the first local authority in the country to try and use the technology and did not go as far as ruling out the use of scanners in the future, although last week chief executive Mike More issued an apology for not consulting staff.
Director of community protectionDean Ingledew said: “We have decided not to pursue fingerprint scanning for street management staff at the cur?rent time. We installed machines in several buildings in order to test the viability of the technology, and I accept that there was some suspicion about intentions which has clouded the whole debate. Technology of this kind is increasingly prevalent, and no doubt a public debate will continue about its use which may change the dimensions of what is acceptable in the future.”
The scanners were positioned inside six offices, in apparent opposition to their purpose as part of a “secure door entry” system.
Union chiefs had slammed their introduction as undermining trust and jeopardising confidentiality agreements.
Westminster Unison branch secretary Phil Vaughan welcomed the decision.
He said: “I had a very positive meeting with [chief executive] Mike More about the proposals to fingerprint staff. Although he clearly supported his managers, he was also concerned about the wider impact on employee relations.
“We are obviously very pleased with this decision, and are now keen to engage with local managers on other ways in which time-monitoring can be done without biometric technology.”
Leader of the opposition Labour group, Councillor Paul Dimoldenberg said: “The installation of fingerprint machines for their own staff made Westminster Conservatives the laughing stock of the country. No wonder staff-management relations are so awful in Big Brother Westminster with half of staff not trusting their managers.” |
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