Face up to Facebook!!!

Social Networking sites such as Facebook, Myspace and Twitter are becoming part of everyday life for many people.

So much so that social commentators are even claiming that the forthcoming general election may be influenced with the aid of such sites.

Social networking sites provide a forum for people to update friends during the course of the day on what they are doing.  When something is so intrinsically part of a person’s life, inevitably problems may arise, particularly when these sites are accessed from the workplace.

Although some employers may be happy to allow a limited amount of personal use of these sites, perhaps limited to lunch hours and breaks for example, there will be others who will want to prohibit the usage.  As employees have no general ‘right’ to use these sites during working hours, it is of no surprise that there is a growing trend for employers to introduce blanket bans in the workplace.

Potential Risks for an Employer

There are potential risks to an employer when allowing employees to use social networking sites at work.  These risks include:

• damage to the reputation of the business;
• disclosure of confidential business information;
• potential vicarious liability on the part of the business for any discriminatory behaviour carried out by an employee against a work colleague.
  
  *Comments made about work colleagues could be used as evidence against the employer, and any individual respondent, in tribunal proceedings.

All these risks will apply even where an employee is utilising social networking sites outside of working hours.

Implementing Guidelines

Whatever you choose to do as an employer, it is advisable to ensure that you have some simple guidelines in place to avoid any unnecessary problems. Considerations include:

•    Introducing restrictions that will prevent staff accessing non work-related sites during working hours.
•    Implementing a comprehensive internet policy highlighting what is acceptable in terms of usage of social networking sites. 
•    Clarifying what, if any, restrictions are in place in terms of accessing social networking sites and at what times of day access is denied / may be permitted.
•    Notifying staff of any actions that may be taken where rules are breached.
•    Monitoring usage of internet sites to ensure rules are being adhered to. (NB where an employer intends to monitor usage, this will need to be made clear to employees in the policy.)