Attorney Heidi Slinkard Brasher was interviewed by The Journal Record's Kirby Lee Davis about the increasing vulnerabilities that social media usage presents to employers that don't update their employee policies or establish active monitoring systems. Aside from experiencing a loss of productivity in the workplace, the potential liabilities to employers include ethical and legal issues such as the disclosure of confidential or proprietary company information, negligent hiring, wrongful termination, discrimination and even insider trading.
In the article titled "Catching up with social media," Brasher commented that the use of social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, along with other new technologies, entered the workplace faster than most employers anticipated. As a result, many companies have been reactive in making and enforcing policies regarding its use, whether such use is on the job or off the clock. She suggested employers take a proactive stance to protect themselves in the age of e-venting and e-disclosure.
The threats to a company or organization aren't just from employees, either. "It seems like the use of social media spans the entire workforce and so you don't just need to be concerned about what the entry-level employees are doing," she said. "You also need to be concerned about what your executives are saying or doing online."
Brasher said that well-crafted policies should state what employer rights they protect as well as what is considered private, employee information. She also emphasized the need for organizations to implement active monitoring systems to maintain compliance.