I work in a drugstore. A major chain with stores in Puerto Rico and all 50 states. I love my company, I really like my job and I'm heading to school to complete a Doctorate in Pharmacy so that I can become a pharmacist in a company that is, frankly, awe-inspiring in it's size, breadth and mission.
We have heard and read many stories about people losing their jobs for things they have said online or pictures they have posted (however legal and of age they may be). Between blogs, Facebook and Twitter, many of us live our lives quite publicly. I post things on Facebook while off the clock about my day at work (during lunch or after I'm done for the day) because I'm annoyed and want affirmation that I'm right to feel annoyed or because I'm happy and something fun or funny happened. Sometimes, I just want to complain about how tired I am and how much I just want to go home and spend time with my little man, Ick.
I can't tell you how many times someone has told me, "You better be careful about what you write! You're gonna get caught and you're gonna get fired! I'm just looking out for you, but you better be careful." I don't know about you, but that sounds like a very thinly veiled threat!
Like most people, I have my employer listed as well as my position and current city, so it wouldn't be too hard to find out where I work, therefore who to call and complain to about yours truly. However, UN-like lots of people, I know how to use those wonderful things called "Privacy Settings!" Non-friends and 'friends of friends' cannot see anything other than my name and profile picture. In fact, my profile doesn't even come up in a search result. My Facebook page is just that: mine. It is my outlet, my place to play games, somewhere to vent and somewhere to keep up with people from many different times of my life.
I also recently started using Twitter again, mostly talking about my baby boy, but occasionally talking about work.
My issue and the point of this post is that regardless of my privacy settings, what I say on those sites and this one is my business. I do not slander anyone, much less my employer. I do not name names, I do not reveal company secrets or blab out HIPAA protected information. I do not post pictures of drunken antics (I don't have any) or drug-induced idiocy (I don't do any of that, either). I have a freedom granted to me by this great nation to say how I feel, to express my distaste with anyone and anything as long as I'm not spreading vicious lies. And out of respect, I'm never viciously mean or hurtful no matter how I'm treated (please see this post).
If my job is ever jeopardized because of something I say online that I have tried hard to keep private, or because of something I have said in a not-so-private setting and is therefore censored and toned-down, you can bet your ass I'll be calling the National Labor Relations Board. I am an upstanding, law-abiding and responsible adult and contributor to society.
Because of this, I do have a right to vent my frustrations about my company, coworkers and management. Because of my respect for people's feelings and reputations and for following the rules, my First Amendment right to free speech is guaranteed and there is no gray area here. For those people using swear words and naming the people who make them mad and say hurtful things are opening themselves up for consequences "up to and including termination." Use some common-sense judgement when you decide to post about your job, that's all there is to it.
This post is seeming to ramble with no particular point, but my point is this: The First Amendment is first for a reason: We are a democracy. Each individual has a voice. How are we supposed to "Keep Moving Forward" (thank you, Walt Disney) and bettering ourselves, our nation and our businesses if no one can say what is wrong with it? The easy answer is: We can't.
I agree, you do have a right to freedom of speech. Thankfully, we all do. You are very smart in protecting yourself with privacy features, etc. :)
ReplyDeleteI guess it all depends on the policies at your (collective your, not you specifically) place of employment regarding these types of sites. While I think it's crazy that they are sometimes forbidden, I have interviewed for a job (with a public school system) and was told (collectively to a room of applicants), "We prefer that you do not have memberships to these sites, but we know you do. We check your personal pages. We are to have access to your personal pages. At any time, we can tell you to cancel your memberships to these sites and/or terminate you." I felt like it was an invasion of my privacy, but at the same time, they laid it all out on the line before I ever took the job.
I guess what I'm saying is, I have mixed feelings about social media & employers/employment all the way around.
I don't think I could accept a job that said they didn't want me to have those social media memberships. Or, if I did, that I had to give them access. I have the privacy settings so strict for a reason. I do,however, have lots of my coworkers as friends. But if I feel my job may be jeopardized by those people, I will certainly "unfriend" them for my protection *and* theirs. I will fight for my right to free speech but I don't expect anyone else to put their butt on the line for me.
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