Last Updated on January 13, 2023 by Arif Chowdhury
As a business owner, you may have concerned about: what employees should not post on social media. Is it going to benefit your business or not?
People have been using social media to express themselves for many years now. The COVID-19 virus, trending news about politics, rallies against illegal murder in police custody, and racial inequality has sparked a flurry of discussion on social media platforms.
Employer or coworker information is more readily available if personal and official connections are integrated across many social media sites.
However, as a company owner or administration, it is essential to have social media guidelines for employees and a social media policy in place to ensure that employees are aware of what is expected of them regarding their social media accounts and how it relates to the organization.
What to do when an employee posts in favor of your company?
Popular social networking platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube are the major. Still, other minor platforms exist, such as various online forums, public chat groups, personal websites or blogs, and image and video-sharing sites are just a few examples of these platforms.
Streaming music apps and internet-based audio services are other accessible options for music lovers.
Employees utilize social media in a variety of ways in the workplace. However, workers are more likely to post images of their lunches on Instagram or joke with their colleagues on Facebook when it comes to social media.
Your employees may post a positive status on your company on their social media profiles.
Do you know that they promote your brand and business by doing so? It’s a free marketing and organic reach to thousands of new potential clients.
Not only that, over 80% of employees agree that social media platforms may improve their professional relationships. In addition, more than 60% of those polled said that the capacity to interact, exchange ideas, and find solutions is one of the key advantages of social networking.
It’s important to note that companies should have a code of conduct in place regarding the use of social media, including guidelines for employees to follow when discussing sensitive topics such as sexual orientation.
One-fifth of those aged 18 to 24 consider social media platforms an “entitlement.” Since at least 50% of them would refuse to work for a firm that prohibited its usage.
Recommended Reading: Ultimate Guide: Social Media Marketing Strategy for Small Business
Here are some tips for you to encourage your employees to post in favor of your organization:
Tell your employees to feel free to share positive information on their social media profiles. Of the organization’s products and services Then, if any new sales are made through their post, they will get a commission.
Note: It will help your business to get extra free organic exposure. However, no spam posts are allowed as they negatively impact your business reputation.
Ask your employees to share positive feedback about your organization to help your business achieve a positive reputation.
Note: You should set up a monitoring team that will actively spy on your employee’s social media activities to check for any violation of rules.
Quick Note: Positive employee feedback on social media is vital for your business’s reputation. Offering increment is good but try to make it professional, not look like a scam.
The flexible work environment for employees.
Allowing workers to take small breaks to utilize social media may improve morale.
As a bonus, this gesture will make them feel appreciated and respected. It may boost morale, retention, and output among workers.
Your workers may feel appreciated and valued if you publicly recognize their achievements on social media.
Helps to build robust communication within the organization.
They may form a healthy working connection with the help of social media.
It’s the best way to get people to open up and talk to you at work and home.
A sense of purpose and deep ties to the organization makes employees more loyal.
Brand organic reach.
Your company’s social networking presence will benefit greatly from this strategy. In the long term, allowing your staff to publish positive remarks about your organization on social media may be competent.
Businesses may boost their online presence by publishing content on their website that showcases their employees like what they do.
LinkedIn, a business-to-business social networking platform, may help your organization get some much-needed exposure.
People who share your company’s values may be found using this approach. In addition, social media may be a springboard for new career paths for those who grew up in the digital age.
Recommended Reading: How Can Social Media Help a Business Grow? (Practical Guide)
What to do when an employee posts against your company?
It is possible to take disciplinary action against workers who share content detrimental to their employer’s reputation. Employees who blog about their job or criticize their companies while under-protected activities are not breaking any laws.
Companies are prohibited by law from interfering with an employee’s right to involve in “concerted action,” which includes working with their peers or colleagues to resolve issues with wages and benefits (NLRA).
As long as they are working on behalf of other workers or seeking to get other employees engaged, individuals may engage in concerted conduct without needing a group.
The National Labor Relations Act protects cooperative action on social media (NLRA). Examples of potentially protected activity include:
- An Instagram video by a dissatisfied employee subjected to sexually explicit text messages from her boss shows the employee’s displeasure.
- Public group chat discussions illustrate the frustration of workers with their company’s lack of pay for working more hours.
- While at work, the employee complains about the absence of safety and social distance norms.
- Employees on Twitter claim that their company’s code of conduct is racially biased.
Social media posts that degrade an employer’s goods or services are exempt from the NLRA’s protection for employees who submit anything offensive, deliberately and intentionally false, or publicly disparaging.
Dishonest employees who tweet things such as, “I’m not surprised given that the corporation is lying to its clients about child-abusing in its office premises,” are not shielded from retaliation by their employers.
An employer may take disciplinary action against an employee if the latter is found to have knowingly misrepresented that the organization never abused a child.
Another example of an action that is protected is whistleblowing. As a result of whistleblowing, employees may reveal their employer’s criminal behavior, such as illegal activities or bribery.
Workers who use social media to reveal their employer’s illicit behavior will undoubtedly be protected.
If the accusation that the corporation used child labor in its office premise is accurate, the employee would be protected from retaliation for disclosing the employer’s alleged breaches of child abuse laws if we return to the earlier case.
Quick Note: Try to make a settlement as quickly as possible with the employees in the event of negative feedback on social media. Remember, people are more interested in negative posts than positive; thus, your employee’s posts may go viral soon unless you remove them.
Here are some possible actions if your employee posts against your organization:
If an employee does not protect under the labor law or employee protection policy, the administration can warn them based on their activity level.
If it is not severe, then the administration can give a warning. Perhaps a considerable fine for reputation damage can also be a good choice.
However, in a severe case, the company can suspend the employee and file a lawsuit.
Conclusion.
In most organizations, management is never concerned about employees’ social media activities. Thus, they do not know what to do when an employee posts on social media.
It is still possible for a company to discipline employees even though they can publish anything they want on their social media accounts.
Employees who participate in an activity protected by the law cannot be reprimanded or dismissed for doing so. But, first, employers should evaluate their rules and regulations and determine whether an employee’s conduct is protected before deciding on disciplinary measures.
Employers risk irresponsible and illegal termination of employee lawsuits if they don’t make an informed judgment about disciplinary action.