CorpComms Magazine

More than one in ten online employees under the age of 35 have posted derogatory comments about their boss on social networking sites, according to a poll conducted by YouGov for human resources consultancy Croner.

The study shows the extent to which social networking sites are being assimilated into the workplace, with over three quarters of web users aged between 25 to 34 years connecting with colleagues via networks such as Facebook or LinkedIn.

Admittedly, this phenomenon abated in later years with just 42 per cent of 45 to 55 year olds and 23 per cent of over 55s contacting colleagues via the forums. Just 15 per cent of social networkers are adding their employers as friends or contacts on these tools.

Employers admitted that the biggest threat to their organisation posed by social networking sites was that of employee abuse - either by using the resources as personal networking tools during working hours or by posting disparaging or otherwise inappropriate comments in public forums.

Yet despite these fears, a survey by Manchester law firm Pannone recently revealed that 79 per cent of employers do not have a social media policy in place. Liz Iles, employment consultant at Croner, said: 'It is really important for employers to have a clearly-worded policy informing employees what is and is not acceptable use of the internet and social networking sites.

'The posting of derogatory comments should be addressed with caution. In the majority of cases comments are made outside working hours and are only viewable by a group of friends. This can make it difficult to take disciplinary action against the employee. A number of high-profile businesses have dismissed employees for leaving inappropriate comments on Internet sites, which has resulted in a finding of unfair dismissal by the tribunal. Employers need to show that they have acted fairly and reasonably, and that any decision to dismiss was not simply a knee-jerk reaction.'

share me: del.icio.us | digg | reddit | Tweet