FACEBOOK AT WORK

Facebook and the Law: The NLRB Got It Right
By Suzanne Lucas | February 10, 2011

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) issued a press release about the much talked about Facebook Case.  The press release states:

    Under the terms of the settlement approved today by Hartford Regional Director Jonathan Kreisberg, the company agreed to revise its overly-broad rules to ensure that they do not improperly restrict employees from discussing their wages, hours and working conditions with co-workers and others while not at work, and that they would not discipline or discharge employees for engaging in such discussions.  (Emphasis is mine.)

You know what this is?  Nothing new and nothing exciting.  This is right in line with previous decisions regarding the rights of employee to talk about their salaries, hours and working conditions.  It makes perfect sense to consider Facebook and other social media as talking.  Because that is precisely what it is.

Now, this does not mean that the internet becomes a free-for-all.  If you could be fired for talking about it before, you can still be fired now for posting about it.  (And remember this is a union case, and doesn’t necessarily apply to the majority of American workers.)

This will not be the last we hear of Facebook and the law.  Other Facebook related cases are pending. You would be smart to be cautious about what you say and post on the internet, because unless you are saying something that is explicitly protected, your boss can still fire you.

UPDATE:  I got an e-mail from Nancy Cleeland, NLRB’s Director of Public Affairs.  She gave me permission to post her e-mail for further clarification:

    Thanks for your post on the Facebook settlement, which someone just forwarded to me. I just wanted to point out that even though the employee was represented by a union, our concerns related to the company’s social media policies and her postings were not union-related and would apply to any private-sector workplace that is under the NLRB’s jurisdiction.

So, this is farther reaching than I originally said.  I’ll be keeping my eye on any Facebook (and other social media) cases, and now I have a contact at the NLRB.

MY THOUGHTS

this is not local news and i have not heard of any local case like this one.  but i'm pretty sure this subject has caused companies (and individuals) headaches.  a lot of people are not mature enough to handle the freedom. 

i had a short project with a company whose employees are spending so much time on FB and youtube and all those internet sites.  we had to hire someone to block certain sites.  of course it caused some uproar. and i did not totally agree with the way it was handled. but it had to be done.

i think companies should immediately draw up internal policies on social networking while at work.  don't wait for it to fester. and come-up with some way for people to still do social networking during break time.  a kiosk would work.

does social networking impact work

Does Social Networking Impact Work? Survey Reports


Social media sites are becoming some of the most heavily trafficked sites on the internet, including in the workplace, according to a recent poll. The survey, conducted by Right Management, gathered data from over 1,000 respondents concerning employee use of social networking sites during work hours.

While about half of the organizations reported blocking sites like Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, others have decided to use the social networking sites as a business tool. Organizations are using the sites to reach out to clients, potential customers, employees, and job seekers.

Overall, 18 percent of respondents reported that social networking on the job often interferes with productivity, while 41 percent said that it sometimes does.

The survey also found some interesting statistics comparing the following criteria:

•Company Size: 51% of workers at an organization with 10,000 or more employees responded that it seldom interferes, compared to 41% at smaller organizations.

•Department: 62% of IT professionals said it seldom interferes, compared to 30% of sales professionals who reported that it often interferes.

•Age: 47% of workers aged 35-44 said that it seldom interferes, compared to 35% of those 18-24.

Organizations need to keep up with the growing presence of social media sites. A recent poll by Manpower suggested that as many as 75 percent of employers do not have a formal policy concerning the use of social networking sites. There are social media policies available on HR.BLR.com (subscription or trial-membership required):

MY THOUGHTS

better include this in the policy manual. it can really affect productivity. i think i won't mind when people can still come-up with excellent work even if social networking sites are not barred. but that's rare. i'm pretty sure, excellent professionals won't have time to use facebook at work. they will be too busy producing results.