Computer technology has made it possible for employers to collect and analyze management information about employees' work performance and equipment use. There are three main tools for supervising office activities. Computer-based (electronic) monitoring systems automatically record statistics about the work of employees using computer or telecommunications equipment in their jobs. Service observation refers to the practice of listening in on an employee's conversation with a customer. Automatic service observation refers to computer tracking of calls' durations and destinations. Telephone accounting refers to automatic, computer-generated records of the times, durations, and destinations of telephone calls. The use of these technologies is surrounded by controversy. Some praise this new technology as a way of helping employers manage resources, plan workloads, reduce costs, and provide employees with timely feedback. Others fear the potential civil liberties and privacy abuses of these new technologies. Another important concern is that there are, at present, no requirements in United States law that monitoring be fair or that employees be consulted about work standards. (Appendixes include notes on computer work monitoring in other countries and the privacy and civil liberties implications of testing employees in the workplace.) (MN)