Back in Ancient times, when I entered the work world, when you were pissed at your boss you would gather by the water cooler and do your whining in person. The boss would rarely hear about it, and if she did learn of your complaints, it was usually considered harmless venting.
Now that people do not speak to each other in person much, all that venting occurs on social media websites. If your boss is being unreasonable, you post a rude comment about her online. That means that the entire world can read your post, which may reflect poorly on your boss, or worse, the entire company. As a result, most large businesses have instituted social media policies. Violation of those policies in many cases may lead to termination.
From a business perspective, it seems entirely reasonable to prohibit employees from denigrating the business in such a public way. But what about free speech? Our Constitution guarantees freedom of speech in the First Amendment. So how should courts resolve this tension between free speech and a business’s reputation?
This is all a rather new question, considering we have only had Facebook and Twitter for a handful of years. So far, though, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), the federal agency that regulate labor relations, has come down hard on employers that infringe on employee’s ability to discuss work conditions, online or in person. As discussed in this NY Times article, the NLRB has ruled in favor of several employees on this ground, but made clear that offensive employee comments that are not about work conditions are not protected. More far-reaching, however, have been the agency’s rulings about the validity of several large corporation’s social media policies.
So, is Facebook the new water cooler? Or is social media so different than old-fashioned venting that it should be treated differently by employers and the courts?
30 Comments
Zach Barnard posted on January 24, 2013 at 12:49 am
The first thing I think about when I read this blog article is this: if we (humans) are able to generate more technology and become a more intelligent species with more knowledge from that technology, shouldn’t we also be able to further extend the uses of our judgement? If an employee of Google, let’s say, posts on their personal Facebook that their boss at Google is sharp-tongued and/or a terrible boss, shouldn’t someone not affiliated with Google who sees that post realize that’s one side of the equation and may just be an employee frustrated with their employer? Why does that one person’s one comment about one employee at Google therefore constitute someone’s entire perception of the company?
As a social media user myself, I find many things interesting and knowledgeable, but few things change my opinion of people. That being said, anything I put out onto the internet I feel is a representation of who I am as a person, and I want everything to be as respectable as possible. Therefore, I would conclude that employees should be held responsible for what they put on their social media sites, but punitive action may perhaps be going too far. I find myself still having mixed feelings about this. Sorry for the long response!
Ran Zuo posted on January 26, 2013 at 6:48 pm
A question I have is at what point does this become libel? And can the company sue for something false that is written online that causes injury to company’s reputation, sales, etc. Can the “boss” as stated in the article, also sue for libel?
My opinion is that with the advent of technology and excessive sharing we need to be careful about what we put online. Water cooler talk is usually harmless, lasting a few minutes and no record of it exists. However, social media records everything we write and makes it accessible to the world. I have a blog that I update once a month. I can see the number of people who viewed my blog, where they are from and even what operating system they use. People from Russia, Ukraine, Philippines, China, Turkey, Belgium, etc have viewed my blog. While this is exciting, it is also intimidating. Who in Belgium, Russia, and Turkey is viewing my blog??
Social media has given us a lot of power and accessibility to the world. We need to be careful with what we are given. A bad post about someone can ruin their lives. A boss who is insulted online by one of his/her employees must feel humiliated and all kinds of trouble can ensue.
Reem Abokhodair posted on January 28, 2013 at 4:29 pm
Venting about someone online can have a huge crowd, which makes me look at this as a defamation case. So before posting something bad about your boss online, make sure you do your homework and find out the difference between defamation and freedom of speech. It can be very tricky!
Aadil Chitalwala posted on February 2, 2013 at 1:02 pm
Over the years venting by the water-cooler was just a way for employees to blow off steam in the office. As the article says, it was usually in casual conversation and was considered harmless, or sometimes just a friendly conversation starter amongst coworkers.However, with the advent of social media things that should have stayed inside the office are now brought on a global platform for many more to here and see about a certain employer. This not only reflects bad on the individual but may look bad on the company as a whole. It is also known that sometimes prospective employers do a background check of an individual by going through their social media interest such as a Facebook Page or their Twitter followings. It would reflect badly on any individual if posts against a previous employer are found as it creates an image that this certain employee has no decency and respect for employers and hence may cost them the job.
Kristen Kruczkowski posted on February 2, 2013 at 2:48 pm
I think that there is a fine line between defamation and freedom of speech. So the disgruntled employee must tread carefully. I also think that the employee should be prepared to take responsibility that he posts online. Once the comment is written, there is not taking it back. However, if the complaint is spoken the matter could come down to an issue of hearsay, which is a lot harder to prove.
I think that the issue of posting defamatory comments on Facebook should be treated the same as posting similar comments in the “letter to the editor” section of the newspaper. And honestly, if the employee does not want the employer to see what he says online, he should not post it. If he does, then he cannot complain about being fired.
Elma posted on February 4, 2013 at 12:39 am
From the employee/s perspective, the right of free speech is violated, because I cannot speak out personal opinions freely, especially if I have doubts against the company policies or personnel, because the company makes me shut my month by the threat of unemployment.
On the other hand, it is a must-do from the company’s perspective. Under the highly competitive trading industry, the hardware of one company is barely different from the other, the only thing that can distinct a good company among the rest is the reputation and prestige. If there is a damage or defamation, or potential damage, cost the company to develop, the company should sacrifice the one, who starts the defamation, rather than the company itself.
Elma posted on February 4, 2013 at 12:41 am
From the employee/s perspective, the right of free speech is violated, because I cannot speak out personal opinions freely, especially if I have doubts against the company policies or personnel, because the company makes me shut my month by the threat of unemployment.
On the other hand, it is a must-do from the company’s perspective. Under the highly competitive trading industry, the hardware of one company is barely different from the other, the only thing that can distinct a good company among the rest is the reputation and prestige. If there is a damage or defamation, or potential damage, cost the company to develop, the company should sacrifice the one, who starts the defamation, rather than the company itself.
Therefore, the online comments should be considered as a source to evaluate one’s employment.
Y. Daniels posted on January 13, 2014 at 12:51 pm
I think the employee should be able to vent online, however, that employee should also realize that venting online is equivalent to venting directly to employer since much of what is online is public and accessible by the employer. Thus, there will be consequences such as missed promotions. If my employee told me that she can’t get along with her team and she dislikes the company, I would not want to promote her as I would doubt her ability as a leader in the company.
Thus, I do believe that a company cannot infringe on this right to free speech, but all free speech has consequences.
Hope posted on September 18, 2014 at 1:28 pm
I read a lot of interesting content here. Probably you spend a lot of time writing, i know how to save you a lot of
time, there is an online tool that creates high quality, google friendly posts in seconds, just search in google – laranitas free content source
suba suba posted on December 23, 2019 at 6:09 am
Zz9jGp Welcome to Affordable Auto Body CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts Franklin, WI
petizione posted on February 18, 2020 at 4:08 am
stiri interesante si utile postate pe blogul dumneavoastra. dar ca si o paranteza , ce parere aveti de inchiriere vile vacanta ?.
offshore company formaiton posted on April 24, 2020 at 7:33 am
Thanks so much for the post.Really thank you! Awesome.
offshore protection posted on April 24, 2020 at 8:25 am
Very interesting subject , thanks for posting. Not by age but by capacity is wisdom acquired. by Titus Maccius Plautus.
ultraviolet light air purification posted on May 18, 2020 at 4:03 pm
Wow, great blog post.Really thank you! Really Great.
US all natural stores posted on May 18, 2020 at 4:37 pm
Only a smiling visitor here to share the love (:, btw outstanding style.
French free lessons posted on May 18, 2020 at 5:03 pm
Very informative article post.Much thanks again. Keep writing.
judi online pulsa posted on May 25, 2020 at 7:15 am
Thanks for the blog.Much thanks again. Really Great.
suc khoe sac dep posted on June 9, 2020 at 5:21 am
This site is the best. You have a new fan! I can at wait for the next update, saved!
singing lessons posted on June 29, 2020 at 7:59 am
Thanks for sharing this good post. Very inspiring! (as always, btw)
Rolet online posted on June 29, 2020 at 8:20 am
I went over this site and I believe you have a lot of great info , saved to bookmarks (:.
rolet online posted on July 20, 2020 at 6:19 am
Woh I like your content , saved to favorites !.
rolet online posted on July 20, 2020 at 8:11 am
Please let me know if you are looking for a author for
free blog posted on November 9, 2020 at 10:19 am
Its such as you learn my mind! You seem to grasp so much
Beste Pris nettbutikker posted on December 7, 2020 at 12:42 pm
Very good info. Lucky me I came across your site by accident (stumbleupon). I have book marked it for later!
domain names posted on January 5, 2021 at 11:48 am
So why you dont have your website viewable in mobile format? Won at view anything in my own netbook.
υπηρεσιε&# posted on January 11, 2021 at 8:00 am
Really enjoyed this post.Really looking forward to read more. Really Cool.
Designed office furniture posted on February 10, 2021 at 9:05 am
Major thankies for the blog post. Great.
Comfortskillz blog posted on September 27, 2021 at 1:44 am
you by error, while I was searching on Bing for something else, Anyways I
Gabrielle Fortin posted on October 21, 2021 at 6:00 am
There is definately a lot to learn about this subject. I love all the points you ave made.
zmorshki.in.ua posted on October 24, 2021 at 1:29 pm
Right away I am going away to do my breakfast, later than having my breakfast coming over again to read more news.