CorpComms Magazine

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia has got into hot water with the launch of a new policy that requires staff to alert the bank to any negative comments they spot on social media sites, including their own networking pages.

The move has prompted the Financial Services Union to demand a meeting to discuss a clause that appears to require employees to report their friends, and then to help the bank to get that material amended or deleted. Failure to comply with this policy could lead to dismissal.

The controversial clause states: 'Inappropriate or disparaging content and information stored or posted by others (including non-employees) in the social media environment may also damage the group and its reputation. 

'For example, your friend could post an inappropriate comment about the group on your Facebook page or create a blog about the group.'

The union believes this aspect of the policy is discriminatory, and severely restricts employees' freedom of expression.

In a statement, the union complains that the policy 'goes beyond conduct that could be regarded as involving damage to the bank's reputation', 'extends the scope of obligations of good faith and loyalty' and also 'misrepresents workplace rights'.

The Commonwealth Bank has said that it believes the new policy, which was effective from 1 December, will allow it to assist customers more speedily on social media. 

It added: 'Many customer issues and complaints raised through social media channels have been resolved through staff tip offs and we encourage our staff to continue to alert us to this feedback so we can provide customer support and outcomes.'

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