Big Brother's Corporate Cousin : HIGH-TECH WORKPLACE SURVEILLANCE IS THE HALLMARK OF A NEW DIGITAL TAYLORISM.

Nation, The, August, 2001 by PARENTI, CHRISTIAN

Winston must log on to the computerized phone system at Charles Schwab brokerage firm no later than seven minutes after 8, or she'll be harassed by a supervisor, called a "team lead." Once her computer is up and running, a message appears announcing yesterday's "productivity scores" in the form of a list ranking the performance of all thirty technicians at Schwab's tech-support call center from best to worst. Arranged in clusters of cubicles, the technicians work beneath a series of huge, elevated computer screens that display each person's name and a minute-by-minute productivity ranking.

"You look up and see who's cleared the most calls, who's done the least, whose phone is 'engaged,' whose is 'idle.' It brings out the worst. You want to win. And everyone...

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