So, how would you feel? Re-assured or spied upon? It’s a good ethical question.

We mentioned in a previous blog about Nike publicising their CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) policies on their website.

Asda, Britain’s second biggest supermarket chain has gone one step further in being transparent with regard to their CSR policies.

In the past they have been criticized by some campaigners for the low wages and poor conditions that were present at some of their clothes manufacturing locations in Bangladesh. Their company website states that as part of their efforts to increase transparency it has now put in webcams at two if its clothing factories in Bangladesh.

This should help reassure customers that they are treating their suppliers ethically and are not employing them under “sweatshop conditions”. The webcam shows clothes being made and you can clearly see the conditions that are present.

The supermarket chain has said that it has also installed webcams at its head office and at an automated cow milking machine at one of their suppliers.

Press reports however have indicated that not everyone is happy with the webcams with some people arguing that it is a case of spying on the workers as opposed to proving how ethical and transparent the company is. Either way, it’s certainly a novel way to utilise technology.

I guess the question we should be asking ourselves though is how would we feel if we had a webcam looking at us at our workplace – would we feel reassured or spied upon?