What is most egregious is that it doesn't have to be this way. There may have been a time when monitoring technologies were too crude to adjust to a particular acceptable use policy but that is no longer the case.

Monitoring software is now highly customizable and if desired can be used in conjunction with an acceptable use policy that does not require random monitoring of personal communications. Even so monitoring is often adopted as a supposedly easy solution to the far more difficult task of instituting and maintaining good management. It is not and will never be a good alternative, though.

Do you see the landscape changing in favor of the employee or the employer regarding e-mail privacy? There have been various attempts at the state and local level to pass legislation that would introduce some balance in this area. Where employers could meet reasonable business objectives and employees could maintain a comfortable level of privacy. As of yet they have met with little success. There is no reason to believe the status quo will change any time soon.