Social Media Policy in the Workplace
Social Media Policy
1. Find at least one case or article online regarding this topic, and briefly explain the facts of the case, and the determination of the NLRB as to whether the employee was properly or improperly disciplined or terminated as a result of their use of Social Media to complain about, or publicly bash their company or boss. Provide the citation to the article you discover. (Use the term “concerted activity” in your query or search to help you find one of these cases.)
With an ever-changing workforce and advancements in technology employees are being wrongfully discharged [more so, illegally fired] from work just for posting or commenting or sharing concerted activity on websites such as Facebook. Just recently in this month of May of the current year, a New York tour bus driver was illegally fired from work for participating in such activity which his employer considered as something wrong. Fred Pflantzer was the bus driver who invited coworkers to join his cause through email and latter got fired from his job after posting on Facebook information that his employer considered to damage the company’s reputation. (Neil, 2013) However, the thing is that the National Labor Relations Act has legal criteria regarding such practice which is referred to as “[protected] concerted activity”, which the National Labor Relations Board enforces. What Pflanzter did was complain that his employer didn’t have health insurance, that his paychecks were even bounced and that he had no vacation benefits. (Kolker, 2013) [Personally, I wouldn’t want to work for an employer that causes these types of problems.] Reinforcing the NLRA, the NLRB went against the employer of Pflantzer, New York Party Shuttle for unlawfully firing Pflantzer who had also invited coworkers to do the same. The NLRB was able to regain Pflanzter’s job back, but he stated that things were still the same and that the practices persisted. Therefore, he decided to make his own tour guide company
1. Find at least one case or article online regarding this topic, and briefly explain the facts of the case, and the determination of the NLRB as to whether the employee was properly or improperly disciplined or terminated as a result of their use of Social Media to complain about, or publicly bash their company or boss. Provide the citation to the article you discover. (Use the term “concerted activity” in your query or search to help you find one of these cases.)
With an ever-changing workforce and advancements in technology employees are being wrongfully discharged [more so, illegally fired] from work just for posting or commenting or sharing concerted activity on websites such as Facebook. Just recently in this month of May of the current year, a New York tour bus driver was illegally fired from work for participating in such activity which his employer considered as something wrong. Fred Pflantzer was the bus driver who invited coworkers to join his cause through email and latter got fired from his job after posting on Facebook information that his employer considered to damage the company’s reputation. (Neil, 2013) However, the thing is that the National Labor Relations Act has legal criteria regarding such practice which is referred to as “[protected] concerted activity”, which the National Labor Relations Board enforces. What Pflanzter did was complain that his employer didn’t have health insurance, that his paychecks were even bounced and that he had no vacation benefits. (Kolker, 2013) [Personally, I wouldn’t want to work for an employer that causes these types of problems.] Reinforcing the NLRA, the NLRB went against the employer of Pflantzer, New York Party Shuttle for unlawfully firing Pflantzer who had also invited coworkers to do the same. The NLRB was able to regain Pflanzter’s job back, but he stated that things were still the same and that the practices persisted. Therefore, he decided to make his own tour guide company