Surveillance Habituation Undermines Productivity

Firms are rapidly adopting AI-enabled monitoring (cameras, keystroke timers, tone analysis), but evidence suggests workers quickly habituate and any short-term gains fade, while monitoring introduces safety, legal and morale costs. That mismatch — booming monitoring markets versus weak lasting performance effects — should reframe debates about labor technology, privacy laws, and procurement choices. — If monitoring doesn't deliver durable productivity gains but imposes costs on workers and institutions, policymakers and companies must reconsider procurement, regulation, and labor protections now that such surveillance is inexpensive and scalable.