Use of Facebook by Employees at Work - Essay Example

Use of Facebook by Employees at Work The use of social media has revolutionized communication across the world. Facebook is the highly subscribed social media site in the world today. Controversies surrounding the content posted on Facebook have caused uproar on its ability to ruin the reputation of public or private organizations. Employees are usually at liberty to address any issue through their social media sites. However, employers are cautious on what their employees post on social media sites due to the costs that the organization can be forced to pay because of bad public image. In addition, employers have gone a step ahead to desire to conduct probes on the accounts of potential employees as well as the current employees in order to judge their integrity using social media. The act of probing, reviewing, and examining an employee’s Facebook account infringes on their privacy, therefore, employers should be cautious not to engage in such an undertaking. It is of paramount importance that employees should be allowed to use Facebook at work but they should do so responsibly. The social media is a platform where employees are able to express their views without any form of intimidation. It is appropriate that all citizens are able to express their freedom of expression at all times within the confines of the law. However, employees should be cautious that their freedom does not affect their organization in a negative way. Posting negative information in one’s Facebook account concerning the organization is a demonstration of disloyalty and discontentment with the organization (Taylor 1). It also shows that the employee is not conscious about the organization. For such, an action can be taken against them. However, this should not be used as the avenue for accessing the employee’s account. A Facebook account is private, anybody not authorized by the owner is supposed to keep off. In situation whereby the employee misbehaves and the information that they post is made public, then they be punished for it. The employees should endeavor to strike a balance between the use of Facebook and the work they are undertaking. The requirements of the employment come first; social media should not occupy the time that an employee should be working. Capacity building and sensitization will help employees focused on delivering results hence they can use the social media at their own discretion. In addition, setting deadlines for employees helps them realize their targets hence they can use the social media when they have already delivered what is expected of them. Developing strategies that discourage use of social media may not be beneficial; instead, the employer should be focused on the overall productivity as well as the motivation of the employees. The balancing act ensures that the use of social media is not given a serious attention as opposed to the work to be done. It is unethical and unlawful to infringe on the right of an individual through the social media. The law provides for the protection of an individual’s privacy. Some employers in the public and the private sector have been requesting for login details to the Facebook accounts of their employees as well as potential employers. This is a serious violation of the law and good ethics. As well put by Orin Kerr, a law professor at the George Washington University, this action is tantamount to “asking for someone’s house keys to search their house” (Kerr 1). It is also apparent that the privacy settings provided by Facebook and other sites requires only the owner of the account or an authorized person should access the account. However, the scenario with most of the hiring organizations is that they coerce individuals to give their Social media account details, failure to which they stand to lose the job opportunity. This result to another breach of the law, the individual is not given a fair treatment. Responsibility on the both sides of the divide is very important. Both the employer and the employees should be at a position of promoting their organization in Facebook. It is the sole responsibility of the employer to ensure that the employees remain objective and are within the confines of the job requirements. One key consideration is that of employee motivation. This ensures that whenever they update information on Facebook, they will do so responsibly. It is no doubt that the impact of Facebook is two-way; it can create either a positive or a negative image of an organization. When employees are empowered to be responsible in their comments towards the organization, a good reputation is built. On the other hand, employees that demonstrate irresponsibility by posting information that portrays the organization in bad light should be cautioned since such can cost the organization a bad public image. The employer has a great role to play in the evaluation and the adoption of a corporate social media strategy. Through this strategy, the employees should feel that they have the freedom to express their views confidently in addition to exploration of social media options. The employer can freely access the information that their employees post in the public domain, but not any private information (Lee 1). There is no problem with the employer using such information to make a consideration of the employee’s views and biases. The role of guiding the workforce on the use of social media for the benefit of the organization should be personal initiative by the employees, though the employer is obliged to steer the process. Bad publicity created through the social media can be easily corrected through a collaborative effort of all the employees. Therefore, they should be actively involved in the corporate social media strategy. Finally, the management should promote a situation where internal communication is facilitated. This ensures that issues do not get into the public domain before they are raised within the internal frameworks. In conclusion, the use of Facebook in the workplace can be beneficial or detrimental. The adoption of a corporate social media strategy would ensure that the organization builds a good reputation based on the use of social media by its employees. The use of Facebook promotes the freedom of expression hence the employees are able to be heard. Motivating the employees to have a positive view promotes organizational well-being. Supplemental Paper This article addresses the employers; this is to shed light on what is required by an organization in the formulation of a corporate social media strategy that promotes the organization. The use of social media has been associated with aspects such as addiction, hence reduced productivity. This article puts into perspective how employers can ensure that social media is beneficial to their organizations. This article is to feature in a newspaper in print format. This is because there are many employers that are able to reach to newspapers in order to be able to get trending information on aspects such as social media that are rapidly transforming the business world. Newspapers also provide a good point of reference; it can be kept for future reference. Each of the paragraphs in the article carries a specific point that enables the reader to analyze the article in a systematic order. The reader can rest assured that they are can be able to get a point from each of the paragraphs. For future reference, one is able to scan through the reading fast while getting the gist of the entire article. The article appeals to pathos, logos, and ethos. By appealing to the logos of the logic of the reader, I put into perspective the scenario in every day workplace while demonstrated how beneficial or detrimental it can be to use social media in order to appeal to the reader’s ethos. In this article, the appeal to logos was used more because the reader is expected to be a person that is informed and seeking further information. This article looks at the use of Facebook for the overall benefit of an organization. Every paragraph carries a point about the dos and don’ts of Facebook use. I used the information about the privacy of the social media in order to ensure that the readers understand the rights of their employees. The argument achieves the overall objective of informing the audience on how they should go about developing a corporate social media strategy that benefits the organization while ensuring the rights of the employees are upheld. Works Cited Kerr, Orin. Proposed Laws Would Forbid Employers from Asking for Job Seekers Social Media Passwords. October 9, 2012.web. June 9, 2014. http://www.foxnews.com. Lee, Timothy. It’s All Part of the Package. October 24, 2012. Web. June 9, 2014 http://www.businessweek.com. Taylor, Jeremy. Should Employers Be Able to Monitor Your Social Networking? Web. June 9, 2014 http://www.asylum.com. Read More