Yasmin Awan outlines some of the dangers to employees and employers of social networking and offers some guidance to employers on dealing with workplace use of sites such as Facebook.
Facebook is the latest in a long line of popular online social networks. Others to note are MySpace and Bebo, however, amongst professionals, Facebook has proved to be the most popular with a reported UK member network of over three and a half million. Recent months have seen an explosion in the popularity of the site and worldwide membership is said to be 21 million with the site adding 100,000 new users each week.
Social networks such as Facebook may be extremely damaging for employers. While employers are aware of the need to respect employees rights to privacy and freedom of expression, many have experienced the negative effects of the use of such sites in the workplace.
Unfettered and casual use of such sites by employees can have negative implications for employers, such as damage to the employers reputation. Two recent examples of such reputational damage are the Argos employee who was sacked after setting up a thread on Facebook entitled “I work at Argos and can’t wait to leave because it’s ****” and postings on Facebook by former employees of the 118 118 phone enquiry service which were abusive and directed at callers. Employers are also at threat of potential breaches of confidentiality which may even result from innocent postings by employees about their working day. Similarly, it is very easy for the employee to damage their own reputation. Pictures of a recent hen night, although hugely amusing to the other members of the hen party, are less likely to generate confidence amongst professional contacts.
Remarks, jokes, images etc posted on the internet are all capable of causing offence and if they do so on one of the protected grounds of anti-discrimination law, race, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation or religion or belief, they may constitute harassment. Employers need to be proactive in preventing such claims arising, as for discrimination or harassment to take place, it is not necessary for anyone to have been actively or directly targeted. In addition, free standing bullying or harassment claims may now be brought where the action was intended to have a detrimental effect on the victim. If any such claims are brought by employees than the employer may be held to be liable for the actions of the offending employees and the potential compensation which may be awarded for these claims is unlimited.
One of the most publicised issues with the emergence of social networking sites is the potential damage to productivity. Some have reported that 233 million hours are lost every month as a result of online networking. Heavy usage, such as browsing photos or watching videos on the sites can also impact on system performance. In addition, some have raised concerns that social networking sites could provide a back door for viruses to infect systems.
Organisations should consider whether to monitor networks or groups set up about them on Facebook and how to deal with these networks and groups if their content is inappropriate
Of course, employers cannot restrict employees’ private use of the internet and access to blogging sites outside working hours, particularly if they are using their own computers and internet connection. The only situation where an employer might be entitled to intervene is where the employee makes comments which are damaging to the employer’s reputation or a breach of confidentiality. However, employers would need to ensure that their contracts of employment have comprehensive confidentiality clauses.
In this situation, employers could start legal proceedings for defamation or malicious falsehood. However, this approach is not without difficulty. For example, even if the culprits are identified (which may be problematical itself), the culprits may have a defence on the basis that their comments were true. In addition, proving financial loss may be problematic. Employers could also consider claims for breach of contract for bringing the employer into disrepute. However, practically speaking, unless the damage to the employers reputation is severe it may not be worthwhile pursuing legal proceedings because of the associated negative publicity.
Many employers including the Metropolitan police, Transport for London, LloydsTSB, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, Kent County Council and Kent Health Trust have responded to the craze by blocking the site altogether. Although this may seem a simple solution to this conundrum, it does not solve some of the wider reputational issues and most of these employers still have a number of groups and networks associated with them.
A more sensible option would be to allow use but provide guidelines on appropriate use of such sites which states:
- What sort of internet usage is allowed for example, short sessions may be permitted but lengthy ones may not be;
- The times and duration of internet use which is acceptable, for example, only at lunchtimes or after normal working hours;
- That the employer has the right to block employee access to unauthorised sites;
- Levels or types of monitoring that the employer has the right to carry out. Employers must exercise extreme caution when it comes to employee monitoring as it is a very sensitive area.
- That employees online activity could adversely affect their reputation and the reputation of their organisation if they identify themselves with their employer
- Clear information on the sanctions for breach of the policy.
- Reminders of the possible implications for breach of contract or for bringing the company into disrepute.
By blocking use of such sites altogether, employers may be missing the opportunity to take advantage of a valuable social and professional networking tool. In fact, some networks such as LinkedIn are especially designed for professional networking. IBM’s Facebook policy is a good example where within the firm, there are 22,000 people on Facebook every day.
If you would like further information on this area or require a review of your policies and contracts please contact Yasmin Awan on 01689 887 805.
