Using work Phone - I believe my personal messages and calls were monitored

[GettingBackOnTr]

Hi all,

I have been given a work phone and I was told that I can use it for personal use. Therefore I went ahead and used it for text messaging, calling, internet and so on. 

I was aware that some autority figure had access to to my messages. Anyway to cut a long story short, they started monitoring my text mesages and calls. I think some people around me who didn't particularly liked me complained to to some authority figure. And it seems that i have said some very mean things about the people in the company specially the authority figures. This was very stressful time for me and I used the work phone to call a family memeber and in my stress I started complaining about everyone. I don't remeber exactly what was said and many of the things I said I probably didn't even mean. But people around me bring up things from that conversation with great detail that they would only have known from listening into my conversation. Is this legal?

I am bullied by many people within the organisation very indirectly and have had indirect hints to resign. Its a pain to go into work because I feel bullied.

Unfortunately, I deleted all my messages and photos from my phone recently and so don't know what I said. 

Can I request my company to retrieve my text messages?

I am not particularly good with phone and security things. So not sure how this all works.

Thanks in advance

[GettingBackOnTr]

I forgot to mention that I had all this conversations out of the office premises. So they couldn't have over heard me. When I first asked my managers whether I had said something to upset them because I feel a difference in how they treat me, they seemed a bit guilty and said no, you haven't. 

But the dropping hints to resign, bringing up information from my personal text messages and describing some photos i had taken from the phone still continues.... 

[OLDYELLR]

Interesting situation. Normally, back in the old days before cellphones and smartphones, if you conducted personal phone conversations on company time it would be logged and noticed. On company time it's stealing, even more so if it's long distance. Yes, I know you weren't doing this on company time. I would assume that having a smartphone provided by your company and free rein for personal use would be a perk of employment. However, because it's "free" it does not mean your employer has to give you privacy. It's still a company phone and it would be just like you talking on a phone in the middle of the shop or office, where everyone can hear. I doubt that your company is obligated, or even able, to retrieve your deleted messages and photos. Perhaps you should have saved them on your home computer first.