Social Media Can Help or Hurt Your Career. Check out our blog for the latest employee relations and workplace investigations insights, trends, and news. New York-based law firm Proskauer, polled multinational companies from countries including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, France, Germany, India and the United States for their Social Media in the Workplace Around the World 3.0 study to find out how organisations kept abreast of how their employees used social media. Thanks to email, messaging tools like Slack and social media, however, it’s normal for even very new employees to communicate with clients, often with very little time for revision. This article will help you: More than half of businesses have updated their policies in the last year. These businesses revealed a number of notable findings and developments – nearly 90% of businesses now use social media for business purposes; and, as a result, social media misuse in the workplace has increased. Business owners were faced with a stark reminder about the potential dangers of social media, when Brisbane coffee entrepreneur Phillip di Bella stripped of his 2014 Business of the Year Award following an offensive and expletive-laden series of posts on his personal Facebook page around the second ‘State of Origin’ NRL game. In essence, social media abuse is just another way to commit misconduct and tribunals will expect employees to be treated fairly, notwithstanding they may have contributed to their own dismissal. The misuse of social media can lea… For today’s employees, social media use is a part of life. As of now the biggest risk of social media in the workplace is retention, but the same fundamental reason employees would want to leave are why others could be attracted to your company — a social media presence! Sometimes warring coworkers take their office feud online. There has been a spate of recent cases in the media of employers having to deal with the difficult issue of historic social media misuse: Toby Young, the journalist appointed to the university regulator’s board, Phil Neville, the England Women’s football coach, and Ben Bradley, a conservative MP, have all been in trouble for offensive tweets that led to questions over their suitability for their … Mr di Bella’s story is not unique – the internet is littered with case studies of improper social media use impacting negatively on a business. However, prohibiting employees from using social media is neither practical nor possible; when used appropriately, social media can be effective in hiring talent, improving employee engagement and retention and raising productivity. The court noted that because the images were shared on social media at work, they contributed to a hostile work environment. Be proactive. When social media is misused, it leads to sexual harassment, criminal offense, employment obligations breach, unlawful discernment, misconduct, violation of students, staffs or parent’s privacy, legal liability exposure, etc. Workers must understand the consequences of noncompliance, ranging from written warnings and suspension to termination. Their malice toward him became crueler as it escalated. While fears that the use of social media in the workplace serves as a “productivity killer” seem to be misplaced, there are still potential drawbacks to its use. 56% of workers who use social media platforms for work-related purposes agree that social media distracts from the work they need to do, with 30% agreeing strongly. Social media misuse in the workplace is of growing concern but the normal rules of application of fair procedures still apply. – 43% of businesses permit all of their employees to access social media sites, a fall of 10% since the last survey. For the first time since first conducting their survey in 2011, Proskauer found that the majority of businesses have had to deal with social media misuse. Social media gives people silent access to their friends … Because of that, it’s important that social media is used appropriately and kept in the proper context. Social media is often a double-edged sword in the workplace, meaning it can help employees communicate more efficiently while also exposing their shortcomings. Due to misuse of social media, it leads to many consequences: 1. They received more than 110 responses from a broad range of businesses, many with a global presence. Click Here to learn more. – Keep it professional: If you are a business or a person trying to build your professional profile then you need your social media to remain professional. To get the best results be respectful and ensure your comments aren’t offensive to anyone. Writing down all your personal information on social networking sites will be dangerous because it can be used against you as people may stalk you and blackmail you. A disabled worker became the target of derogatory comments online when he reported to company officials that a coworker had started his own blog. The technology allowed people to connect in ways they couldn’t before: socialize with family members anywhere in the world, find nearly forgotten friends, look up old classmates and join a cyber community to share information. You can still be conversational and personal with your posts but make sure they are appropriate. If you post something in anger you need to be prepared to handle the consequences and possible backlash. XYC Corp.’s IT Department had conducted limited investigatio… Although investigators found no direct link between her death and the cyber bullying, speculation about social media having the power to end a life was widespread. In addition to implementing policies, businesses are now taking precautions to protect against specific risks associated with misuse of social media, such as: Misuse of confidential information (80%) Misrepresenting the views of the business (71%) Inappropriate non-business use (67%) Disparaging remarks about the business or employees (64%) On the second anniversary of the #MeToo movement, we evaluate the impact on employees and the way they now feel about coming forward with workplace issues. The use and abuse of social media in the workplace is an excellent way to give life to the provisions in a code of ethics. From the #MeToo movement to best practices and personal anecdotes from the field, the HR Acuity blog is here to help you stay in the know on all things employee relations. 3. Social media is a communication tool to allow you to share discussions with people all over the world. 93, No. Sydney-based public relations firm CP Communications offer the following advice for people looking to engage with a wider audience over social media: – Take a break before you post: If you are angry about something don’t jump straight on social media and tell the whole world about it. We talked to HR leaders about changes taking place within their organizations. The local coroner called her death a suicide. “I’ve apologised publicly to my friends on Facebook, because my friends see my personal Facebook page, and if you follow me you know my passion – and if you don’t like what I have to put on there, you hit ‘unfriend’, that’s what Facebook is all about, Mr di Bella told Brisbane’s 4BC Radio. Since the Internet remains largely unregulated, employers must set and enforce their own policies on appropriate social media use. Other employees might not have argued in the office, but found that they could use social media anonymously to insult, shame or bully their coworkers. These are illegal as well as serious activity that takes place due to social media misuse. 54% of these workers agree that social media breaks help them recharge at work. It allows people to share information, ideas and views. 2. Social media is a challenging topic because it crosses over so many ethics and compliance issues. If a manager threatens them with disciplinary action, they might stop quarreling in the office and start sparring on Twitter. Some 42% of these workers disagree that social media is a distraction. “Legal Implications of Employee Social Media Use” Dennis, Corey M. Massachusetts Law Review, 2011, Vol. In addition to implementing policies, businesses are now taking precautions to protect against specific risks associated with misuse of social media, such as: Training employees reduces risks, yet, there has not been any significant increase in the number of businesses providing employees with training on appropriate use of social media. The body of a 31-year-old firefighter was found in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park in April 2016. They even went so far as to cajole each other into photographing the disabled worker’s disfigured hand, which he always kept out of sight. More than 70% of businesses reported having to take disciplinary action against employees for misuse (compared to 35% in 2011). We often use social media as an extension of our personalities, so it’s no wonder that employers would measure how current staff or potential hires conduct themselves online to gauge their behavior in the workplace… A US studyof the dual effects of social media in the workplace supports the view that it “may simultaneously contribute to productive behaviors (task-oriented and relationship-building) as well as unproductive behaviors (deviance) at work.” And drawing upon Expectation Discomfort Theory (EDT) and Channel Expansion Theory (CET), this research also demonstrates “how intense usage of this particular communication medium may enhance an individual’s ability to use social media for different purposes (… Thirty-five percent of U.S. adults — about 54 million people — said they’ve been bullied at work. 4. – Consider the rules of the platform: Before posting anything understand the rules of the social media platform and ensure your posts conform to the accepted guidelines. With all the benefits that social media is bringing to the corporate world, a company faces numerous risks in its use, from misuse of company resources, to conflicts of interest and disparagement of others. During the time she was missing, she and other female workers at the Fairfax County, Va., Fire Department were the targets of malicious, sexually offensive name-calling on a blog that firefighters allegedly used. Step 1 – In developing a social media policy, the following principles should be considered: Social media is a form of media – therefore normal risks in relation to publication in the media apply; defamation, contempt of court, misleading and deceptive conduct, confidential information and … Although it was previously stated it improves interaction, this is not … His coworkers turned to social media out of retaliation and the intent to disgrace him. Interactions between coworkers on social media channels can create thorny human resources issues in cases where such interactions lead to harassment or other inappropriate behavior. Two of the five most unethical practices relate to the abuse of social media at work: violating company Internet policy and misusing company time. Social Media at Work When Making the Decision to Accept or Reject a Job . It’s doubtful that the pioneer inventors of social media had bullying, harassment, shaming and blaming in mind when they launched their cyber platforms. Franchise Business Management Essentials Online Course, How To Franchise Your Business Online Course, How To Choose The Right Franchise Online Course, Franchise and Small Business Survival Online Course, FranchiseED 100 Day Coaching and Mentoring Program, Lifting the Bench Strength with Culture and Communication, Improving Leadership and Business Performance, Social Media in the Workplace Around the World 3.0, Equip yourself with the skills you need to run a successful business, including specific franchise marketing, with our, Researching the franchisor before you buy, Getting prepared to apply for franchise finance, Misuse of confidential information (80%), Misrepresenting the views of the business (71%), Disparaging remarks about the business or employees (64%). A clear, direct Internet and social media policy is … Findings: “Employees’ use of the Internet, particularly social media, has resulted in productivity problems in the workplace. 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