Monitoring employee social media

Social media is ubiquitous. With our use of social media at an all-time high, employers must take extra care to protect company information. In a world in which employees are live streaming their “everything” on social media, employers must determine whether to monitor employee social media accounts. And it’s not uncommon for employers to do just that. When considering whether to monitor, employers must strike a delicate balance between protecting their business and managing employee privacy expectations. Employers should also consider the potential monitoring pitfalls. Monitoring an employee’s or applicant’s social media account may be unavoidable at times and can provide vital information to employers. It can also provide information employers don’t want. In what circumstances should employers consider monitoring their employee social media accounts?

Reasons to monitor

There are many reasons you may want to monitor social media accounts. You may wish to gather additional information about applicants. After all, knowledge is power. You may want to search an applicant’s social media accounts to see whether she spoke poorly of a former employer or colleagues, or any number of other things.

You may also want access to an employee’s social media accounts to make sure he isn’t posting things that would embarrass the company, including making negative comments about the company or its customers or sharing confidential company information.