One of my favorite bloggers, Jon Hyman, was just saying recently that social media and privacy cannot coexist. Even on their own time — out of the office — what employees say and do online can have an impact on the workplace.
Teachers are prime examples. After the jump, yet another educator has found the headlines for being outspoken online…
Maybe it’s that good feeling I still have after eating some hella-good spicy fried chicken at Bolton’s Spicy Chicken & Fish in Nashville, TN last night.
Oh no, wait, that’s heartburn.
In any event, I’m feeling generous. I feel like giving back some of the love. Later today, I will be speaking at the Advanced Employment Issues Symposium in Nashville, TN, where I will be presenting Using Social Media To Make Hiring and Firing Decisions: What’s Legal? What’s Not?. If you have social-media hiring-related questions that you would for like for me to answer, fire away! You just need to do two things for me.
The other day, I came across this great article on ESPN.com, which outlines all of the social-media policies currently in effect for several sports leagues worldwide. What struck me most is that several organizations, including the NCAA, have no social-media policies for their athletes. And at the other end of the spectrum, the Ultimate Fighting Championship actually rewards its athletes based on number of Twitter followers.
This further supports a point that I like to hammer (e.g., here and here): ultimately, for any business, a social-media policy is never a “one-size-fits-all.” Instead, the social-media policy — and all companies should have one — must be tailor-fit to the objectives and goals of the company.
For additional insight into drafting social media policies, I suggest Think Before You Click: Strategies for Managing Social Media in the Workplace.
Last week, a National Labor Relations Board Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ruled, for the first time, that an employer could legally fire an employee based on Facebook activity. In Karl Knauz Motors, Inc. d/b/a Knauz BMW and Robert Becker, the ALJ okayed a BMW dealership firing an employee who posted pictures (accompanied by some snarky comments) about a neighboring Land Rover dealership.
So what’s up with the title of this blog post? And why should employers be concerned with this decision? Find out after the jump…
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Earlier this year, a local teacher was suspended after her school learned about nasty comments on her personal blog concerning her students. And that story became national news. More on the history here, here, and here.
Now, word has it that the school is considering a social-media policy. Well, it’s about time! What’s in the policy and does it go too far? Find out after the jump.
Earlier this year, reports of a Connecticut ambulance company firing an employee who had complained about her supervisor on Facebook, grabbed the headlines. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) complained that the firing was illegal. And although the company contended that it did nothing wrong, free speech advocates spewed hellfire and brimstone. Ultimately, the bloodlust subsided when that case settled.
Several months later, the NLRB is at it again. However, this time, for the first time, an NLRB Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) has found, after a full hearing, that an employer unlawfully fired employees for Facebook postings. Oh, by the way, the employer involved is non-union. More on this important decision and what it means for private employers after the jump.
On Friday night, I read the just-released National Labor Relations Board’s Acting General Counsel report on social media investigations. In fact, I read it twice cover-to-cover. (No, I won’t be winning the “Coolest Person In America In Philly On My Block In My House” Award this year).
Dorkiness aside, I was able to distill the report down to the points that employers will need to know if they hope to avoid federal scrutiny. Those details follow after the jump…
From TMZ.com:
Rapper The Game could face criminal charges after he tweeted the phone number of the sheriff’s station in Compton, CA — but told people it was the number to call for an internship — causing the station’s phone lines to become overrun with calls and delaying emergency services.
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Lots of good stuff on the interwebs this week about social media and human resources. Rather than breaking it up into a bunch of different blog posts, after the jump, I offer you a combination platter to enjoy with your morning coffee…
The Employer Handbook Blog