With all the focus on the dangers of Texting while Driving, would you be surprised to learn that Texting while Driving may be OK in Texas? Texting while Driving is also OK in OK (Oklahoma). In fact there are six states that do not prohibit drivers from texting while driving.
According to Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), the 6 states that do not prohibit texting while driving for all drivers include:
Arizona, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Oklahoma, Texas
Note – Four of the six states do have Texting while driving bans for Novice and/or School Bus drivers. The two states with no explicit prohibitions are Arizona and Montana.
There are only 13 states (and the District of Columbia) that prohibit all drivers from using handheld devices while driving:
California, Connecticut, Delaware, DC, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont (as of October 2014), Washington, West Virginia.
Note - An additional 25 states do prohibit "novice" drivers from using handheld devices while driving. "Novice" drivers are those who are under the age of 18 and/or have a Learner's Permit
Your Company's Wireless Acceptable Use Policy
So, if you're a Texas-based company, do you allow your employees to text while driving (since it is not illegal)? Or do you have a Wireless Acceptable Use policy providing a set of rules and regulations on when and how an employee or contractor should/shouldn't use their wireless device on company-related business?
While most companies ban texting while driving, many will also require hand-free usage while driving. Some companies will go even further - feeling that any talking while driving is unsafe (distracted driving) and will ban all talking while driving. The employee/contractor must pull over to accept/place/continue a call.
Regardless of the nature and depth of your company's Wireless Use policy, it may be helpful and informative to take an "out-of-the-box" look. Here is a perspective for thinking about your policies:
Wireless Use Policy – Questions and Perspective
Let's dig a little deeper into your Wireless Use policy. Some questions to ask.
• When a violation to the Wireless Acceptable Use policy is brought up, are there standard and consistent procedures to address this issue?
• Who handles a violation to your Wireless policy? Is it the IT/Telecom department, the direct manager, HR? Or is it ad-hoc?
• What are the penalties? Are they vague? What are the penalties for the first offense, second offense, third offense, etc.?
• Are all violations the same? Or are some more egregious (i.e. involve a moving violation vs. an accident)?
• Is it a reprimand, a notice in their personnel file, time off with pay, time off without pay, termination? What constitutes an egregious violation?
• Is the policy enforced consistently? Is the delivery driver under the same policy as the vice president of sales?
• Do you have a "zero tolerance" policy?
• How do you inform/train your employees and contractors about your zero tolerance policy? Are they reminded on a consistent basis?
• To prevent an "unsafe work environment," do you encourage vigilance by others? Or are violations to your Wireless Use policy viewed as not serious and thus, are tolerated?
PERSPECTIVE – An interesting exercise is to compare your company's Wireless Use policy with your company's Sexual Harassment policy. To do this, simply replace "Wireless Use policy" in the above questions with "Sexual Harassment policy."
The intent of this exercise is not to equate violations of Wireless Use with violations of Sexual Harassment. Clearly violations of Wireless use policy pale in comparison. However, it is an exercise to check the "seriousness" of your Wireless Use policy.
From an IT/Telecom perspective, this exercise may be helpful in understanding/defining the true priority of your Wireless Use policy within your organization. On a scale of 1 to 10, where 10 is Highly Serious (e.g. Sexual Harassment, Stealing, Fighting) where does your Wireless Use policy fit? Would you rate it a 5 (moderate) or a 1 (not serious at all)? How does this compare to other company policies and practices (i.e. tardiness, dress code, expense reimbursement, etc.)?
If your Wireless Use policy is deemed to be serious (i.e. 7), what resources (one time and ongoing) will you need? Who will provide the training? Who will follow up with your employees and contractors? How much time will it take to investigate violations?
Wireless Use Policy Rationale
What is the purpose of the policy? While the primary purpose is safety, many suspect that part of the policy is to act as a "Shield" against lawsuits. Specifically, if your company policy forbids use of wireless devices while driving, then the company is not as culpable when a lawsuit arises.
In the real world, is your Wireless Use policy a shield or a sieve?
Let's assume that your company is being sued due to an accident while an employee was talking on their phone. Note that it doesn't even need to be a company provided device. If they were using a personal phone but were talking to another employee/contractor, your company may still be liable. Imagine a Plaintiff attorney asking your CIO or HR representative the following questions:
• Does your company have a Wireless Use policy?
• If so, what is your company's Wireless Use policy?
• How often are your employees/contractors informed of the policy?
• How many violations have been documented in the past 12 months? The past 24 months?
• How do you become aware of violations?
• What are your procedures to investigate/document/substantiate violations?
• Do you have a "zero tolerance" standard?
• What are the penalties for a violation?
• Over the past three years, how many managers, directors, executives have been punished for wireless violations?
Conclusion
Having a Wireless Use policy is highly encouraged. This article is designed to help you and others within your company "think outside the box" and put your Wireless Use policy in perspective.
The Society of Communications Technology Consultants (SCTC) is an international organization of independent information and communication technology (ICT) professionals serving clients in all business sectors and government worldwide
