Social media is part of everyday life for many individuals. It is how many people connect, create their public image, and engage in a public discussion. However, employees' actions on social media can affect the image and reputation of their employer. Therefore, it is important for employers, who want to address their employees' social media use, to have a clear social media policy.

A social media policy must set out clear expectations on how social media is to be used. Problems tend to arise when employees do not know what their employer's social media expectations are. Since the main issue comes down to reputational harm, it may not always be appropriate to ban all posts. It is better to target offensive and problematic posts.

There are many things that a social media policy can address. What will be addressed in a social media policy can vary based on the employer's expectations in the workplace. However, a social media policy can address things such as:

• Banning employees from posting confidential information on social media
• Whether the use of social media is permitted in the workplace
• In what context can social media be used in the workplace
• What social media sites are permissible for employees to use
• Whether the employer monitors social media posts
• The extent that the social media posts and profiles should be private
• Other rules that may apply to the use of social media in the workplace (such as other policies or a collective agreement)
• The consequences of not complying with the policy

Though some employees may protest the scope of a social media policy, an employer has a wide discretion on how they expect their employees to act on social media. Unlike the government, employers can drastically restrict the freedom of expression in the workplace. This means that employees can be expected to be careful with what they post on social media.

There are still limits to what the employer can do with their social media policy. For example, they cannot look at private messages on social media, even if the employee used their company laptop to write those messages.

Though social media policies limit what employees can do on social media, it is also a good place to set out the employer's social media obligations. Employers may be required to protect their employees from harmful social media practices. This could include stopping work-related online harassment, doxing (when a person releases personal or private information on social media that may prove harmful or embarrassing to the individual), and swatting (when a person tries to convince a police force into sending a heavily armed strike force or swat team to a person's home for no other reason than to humiliate or embarrass the individual).

How Suzanne Desrosiers Professional Corporation Can Help with your Social Media Policy

Suzanne Desrosiers Professional Corporation can help employers draft a social media policy that is tailored to their workplace. We can also help update older social media policies. Our advice can help ensure that the employer puts in expectations that are permitted under the law. You can reach us by calling us at 705-268-6492.