Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Food For Thought




I ran across this on Pink Raygun when I was reading the " Merlin" re-cap. Check that out by the way for my new favorite word.." Starbucked", a verb.

http://www.pinkraygun.com/






Given the previous post...yeah...people need the wake up !
Have a great day,
Ciao,
Aunty Pol

4 comments:

HubbleSpacePaws said...

OK. You know the expression on my face after reading the previous post? Nothing compared to the one now.

Aunty Pol said...

My problem is that I can actually see both sides of this issue. Yes, I blog, FB and tweet at work but I honestly try to keep it within reasonable guidelines and it is not the be all and end all of how I spend my day aat the office. Employers may find themselves resorting to taking this position because it has been so abused.

Above that , I am begining to have a problem with the constant need I see some people having to update , at the cost of actual human interaction..it's a slippery slope.

Hugs

kleinwort said...

You've got a very good point there, Aunty. I agree abuse drives employers to monitor, and then go draconian, because certain behaviors can be difficult for them to address.

I do think asking for passwords goes too far. (That's the issue that prompted "the expression!")

An employer asking for social sites on an employment app doesn't faze me at all - we put ourselves out there for the world to see. Our employer, or potential employer, is just another part of the world.

I remember the day when people were fired for personal phone calls or emails. Prohibitions against personal activity during work hours were everywhere. Today, most employers recognize that a low level of personal activity during the work day does not generally impair productivity. It is up to an employer, however, to be explicit about their level of tolerance, prior to disciplining someone, for common work place behavior.

Obsessive posters who are neglecting their job duties should fall in the same category as anyone who is goofing off at work. Having your social sites on file simply makes it easier for an employer to document goofing off... something you shouldn't have been doing anyway! And they don't need your password for this.

I do know what you mean about "at the cost of actual human interaction," though, Aunty... that's just sad! But again, having a password won't fix social isolation or obsessive behavior.

The only thing having a password enables an employer to do is remove material they deem objectionable. I don't think they need it.

Employers still have the same remedies they've always had for libelous communication or for dissemination of proprietary info. If a state has at will employment, an employer has always been able to, in effect, sanction off-duty inappropriate behavior, such as offensive posts.

I would think that, in exchange for some form of consideration, an employer could make it a condition of employement for a staff member to remove material they deem inappropriate, from social sites, when requested. (You work for a law firm... would that fly?)

Guess I've got some real privacy and free speech issues with the concept of an employer asking for personal passwords as a condition of employment.

Hugs!!
L

kleinwort said...

Whoa!! Didn't mean to write a book there!

Must be a topic that hits a nerve for me, eh????

Hugs,
Lisa