How to handle social media at the work place WSG Labor Law Seminar 19 November 2010 Paula Hogéus.

How to handle social media at the work place

WSG Labor Law Seminar 19 November 2010

Paula Hogéus

November 2010 2 Employees and the social media

Spill-over effect and publicity

ÅsaÖgren (Swedish local politician) on Facebook:

”Dear God, this year you took my favourite actor Patrick Swayze away from me. You took my favourite hard rocker Dio away from me. You took my favourite singer Michael Jackson away from me. Now, I just want you to know that my favourite politician is Fredrik Reinfeldt… AMEN!”

• Appropriate/inappropriate? – Legal/criminal? – Reason for warning? – Reason for dismissal; with or without notice?


• Which are the social media?

• Use during work time

• Use outside of work time

• Basic labour law

• Freedom of speech and the right to critisize

• Examples

• Preventive measures

Agenda


Definition (Wikipedia)

• Social media are media for social interaction, using highly accessible and scalable publishing techniques. Social media uses web-based technologies to turn communication into interactive dialogues.


BLOG – Website containing regular entries, often interactive, with the possibility for the viewer to comment on posts.

Microblog. The user publishes short messages of maximum 140 characters. The publishing is either public or limited to the user’s contacts.

Website where individuals build networks and communicate with each other. The communication can be in private by sending messages between two users, or in public by posting information on a user’s ”wall”. It is also possible to create groups, which can be open to everyone or be private. Groups can also be created by organizations and companies for advertising purposes, or as fan clubs.

Website for music and video transmission.

The social medias – example


Cost aspects

• Work time lost on social media networks could potentially be costing Denmark DKK 11 billions per year (appr. € 1,5 billion) (Danish Chamber of Commerce. 2 500 individuals in the basic data, 2010)

• Work time lost on social media networks could potentially be costing Britain up to £ 14 billion per year (appr. € 16 billion) (MyJobGroup.co.uk. 1 000 individuals in the basic data, 2010)


Cost aspects

• Breaks and pauses

• Directive 2003/88/EC – National Working Hours Act, CBA

• Art 4: An employee who works more than six hours, must be entitled to a break


Basic principles – working time

• The employer manages and directs the work• Salary in exchange of work performance. The employee

perform the work/is at the employer’s disposal – and receives the salary in exchange to that.

• Absence without permission


HR aspects

• Type of workplace

• Rules and policies

• The employee’s perception of the employer (modern or old-fashioned)


How to act on the social medias

• What to say and what not to say

• The duty of loyalty

• Protection of trade secrets


Freedom of speech, freedom to inform and the right to criticize – constitutional rights

• Freedom of speech, freedom to inform – The right to use the freedom of speech at work differs between the private and the public sector of the Swedish labour market. In the private sector, the duty of loyalty to the employer has precedence.

• The right to criticize – The criticism must be correct; with the purpose to eliminate problems and improve conditions. A purpose like e.g., revenge cannot be legitimate. The employee may not harm the employer with the criticism and must first criticize the employer in private before in public.


Problems with unclear instructions from the employer

• The employee’s use of the employer’s computer for communication

• The employer promotes the employee to actively use social media

• Activity both during and after of working hours


Example: ”McDonalds, not only hamburgers”


”McDonalds, not only hamburgers” (cont.)


Example: ”The fired paramedic in Connecticut”

• A paramedic who critisized her boss on Facebook was fired

• The American National Labor Relations Act prohibits employers from punishing workers for discussing working conditions or unionization

• The company’s policy prohibited employees from referring to the company “in any way” on Facebook or other social media sites – this was considered “overly broad”


Example: ”Bloody surgeon photos”


Example: ”The twittering enginedriver”


”The twittering enginedriver” (cont.)


Example: Pet store employeepublishedpictures of drownedrabbits

• Published on Facebook

• “The manager took the pic for me”

• Pleaded guilty to animal cruelty


Preventive measures

• Policy regarding company blogs• Policy for private use of the Internet; including social media• Information and education to the employees: ”How am I

supposed to act?”• Strategies on actions upon breach of the policy


The employer’s possibilities to monitor the employees’ use of the Internet

• Principles:

- The employer manages and runs the work

- The employer owns the work tools

• Balancing of interests; the employer’s interest against the employee’s integrity:

- Good practice

- Entitled interest

- Information in accordance with the Data Protection Act


Objective reason for dismissal?

Clear situations:• Criminal behaviour• Grossly disloyal actions • Repeated gross violations of policy despite several

warnings


Objective reason for dismissal?

More uncertain situations:• Excessive usage of social media as such during work time

(despite warnings)• References related to work which could harm the

employee’s/employer’s credability (private sector)• References non-related to work which could harm the

employee’s credability (private sector)

Advokatfirman DelphiRegeringsgatan 30-32, P.O. Box 1432

SE-111 84 Stockholm, SwedenPhone +46-8-677 54 00

Fax +46-8-20 18 [email protected]

www.delphi.se

How to handle social media at the work place WSG Labor Law Seminar 19 November 2010 Paula Hogéus.

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Transcript of How to handle social media at the work place WSG Labor Law Seminar 19 November 2010 Paula Hogéus.