As a result of these concerns, employers may choose to add a policy to their employee handbook in order to dictate behavior. Think of them as an employee manual for social media best practices. While employers can often use social media to further their business, they may also be concerned about what employees choose to share with the public. The guidelines below apply these longtested principles to the social media space. Guidelines for employee use of social media this document is designed to offer employees of huntington ingalls industries hii practical and helpful guidance for responsible, constructive communications via social media channels. Nlrb memo clarifies rules for workplace social media policies. Designing employee social media guidelines that both encourage positive interaction and prevent the kind of posts that will disrupt business requires hr departments to take a measured approach. Employee social media guidelines can help employers and employees reach a consensus on social media etiquette and best practices to be followed by anyone who represents the company. According to weber shandwick, 98% of employees use at least one social media site for perso nal use, of which 50% are already posting about their company. If anyone on your staff has a social networking web page facebook, myspace, twitter, plaxo, linkedin. How to create effective social media guidelines for your. Social media has become a regular part of everyday communication. Additionally if you see something being shared related to intel on a social media platform that shouldnt be happening, immediately inform social. Social media refers to the use of webbased and mobile technologies to advance interactive communicationboth public and private usesand to include instant messaging, texting, emailing, and video chatting.
Laying down a list of heavyhanded rules may actually create a lessfavorable social media presence than not having any rules as all, as employees turn away from employee advocacy altogether. This paper examines two dimensions of the new landscape. The risks regarding errors in social media must be outlined all employees must be required to sign an agreement saying that they understand and will abide by social media rules endorsements. How to write a social media policy for your company free. Careful consideration must be given to the contents of a social media. A social media policy outlines how an organization and its employees must conduct themselves online. Use of this policy will help employers ensure that use of social media by employees is appropriate and in the interests of the business. May also be called employee internet policy, company internet policy or computer usage policy. This social media policy includes alternate clauses to allow an employer to tailor the policy according to the above considerations. American hospital association social media policy aha. Topics include common business applications of social networking sites, employee use of social media. Social media guidelines for employee and faculty personal use this document is intended to help guide mass general employees with their personal use of social media, including.
Making those direct links can help employees internalize social media policies and adhere to the rules. Employers continue to live in a state of uncertainty, wondering if the national labor relations board nlrb or board will declare that their social media policies or practices violate the national labor relations act nlra. You agree not to attack fellow employees, members, or vendors. Finra was also consulted in the preparation of this risk alert. Churches should adopt a social media policy as part of an employee manual. These guidelines describe how the american hospital association aha makes use of social media. Employees should be aware of the effect their actions may have on their images, as well as companys image. Social media continues to infiltrate every part of our lives. Employees may, on occasion, utilize social media and the web for personal matters in the workplace. A social media policy for employees can give them the instructions they need to know how to. A social media policy for employees can give them the instructions they need to know how to handle corporate accounts. This policy is intended to help staff make appropriate decisions about the use of social media such as blogs, wikis, social networking websites, podcasts, forums, message boards, or comments on webarticles, such as twitter, facebook, linkedin insert other relevant social media websites. Social media, when used effectively, presents unequaled opportunities for you to share our navys story in an authentic, transparent and rapid manner while building richer, more substantive.
Employees need to know and adhere to the companys code of conduct, employee handbook, and other company policies when using social media in reference to company. Careful consideration must be given to the contents of a social media policy. The following principles apply to professional use of social media on behalf of company as well as personal use of social media when referencing company. In fact, its a crucial tool even if your organization doesnt use social media. Although this policy is drafted primarily to address employees use of social media in the workplace and use of company resources, optional clauses addressing outside use of social media are included. As a result, any online communication that directly or. This employee internet usage policy is ready to be tailored for your companys needs and should be considered a starting point for setting up your policies regarding computer usage for employees. Fda social media policy november 2015 page 4 of 12 office of operations, division of ethics and integrity. Yet 63% of americans say their employer has no social media policy. Depending on the risk to the company, the compliance plan can range from very simpleoccasional procedures to more detailedstricter.
The university permits only limited private use of social media on university it systems from university and personal devices for nonuniversity purposes. Thus, every business is needed to follow social media policy template that will specifically highlight the rules and regulations to be followed by every employee in the office in. Dont promote or discuss products or companies through social media in exchange for cash. Employees may engage in incidental personal use of social media in the workplace so long as such use does not consume significant time or resources, interfere with operations and productivity, or violate university or department policies. Create employee social media guidelines to avoid losing. As a general rule, fundraising solicitations over social media are. Social media policy this policy is for use by employers to provide practical assistance on the use of social media by employees. Where a social media policy lays out the rules and repercussions for breaking them, social media guidelines are more instructive. These guidelines should outline how to behave on social media in a way thats positive and healthy for the company, employees, and customers. Social media policy for employees template free template.
This document was prepared by the sec staff and is not legal advice. For the purpose of this document, the term social media shall refer to a website or platform that allows the creation and exchange of usergenerated content. A comprehensive social media policy can minimize future costs by placing employees on notice as to what content and behavior is acceptable in using social media. Employee handbook policies on social media hurley burish. However, the constant inclination to the social media throughout the day has shown unproductive attitude among many employees of late. Oversees ethics requirements for fda employees, including requirements pertaining to.
A social media policy is a crucial tool for any organization that uses social media. In the world of social media, this applies to the content of our posting to various social media sites. This document was originally developed to provide a set of guidelines in the use of social media applications within voices community, but we believe it has wider application for the university of michigan. Social media guidelines for ap employees revised may 20 aps social media guidelines are based on our statement of news values and principles.
The harvey case is important as it illustrates that the right to. The rapid growth of social media technologies combined with their ease of use and pervasiveness make them attractive channels of communication. Hii is active in social media, including on facebook, twitter, instagram, linkedin and youtube go to. Although the univer sity allows employees open access to the internet and. All communications we make using social media which promote our services or any. Two of cvs healths social media policies requiring employees to disclose certain personal information ran afoul of federal labor law, according to an advice memo from the national labor relations. Oc is a coowner of this social media policy and is responsible for monitoring opm use of social media sites, referring compliance concerns to appropriate agency personnel and tracking best practices. If you are an intel employee, contingent worker, or with an affiliated agency, you can learn more about our social media policies by visiting our social media pages on marketing central. Social media policy august 20 policy although many users may consider their personal comments posted on social media or discussions on social networking sites to be private, these communications are frequently available to a larger audience than the author may realise. Policy statement the university recognises the benefits that the use of social media can bring to the organisation, and to individual employees, both in their personal and working lives. This document is designed to offer employees of huntington ingalls industries hii practical and helpful guidance for responsible, constructive communications via social media channels. The policy can be easily adapted to suit individual employers requirements. Rules of conduct as outlined in the employee manual apply to social networking activity.
Clergy and lay staff are held to a high standard of behavior while online. A sample social media policy for hotels by daniel edward. There are some guidelines that can be applied across all forms of social media. This article provides an overview of the use of social media by employers and their employees. Guidelines for employees personal use of social media. Policy can serve as a foundation for future disciplinary action to be taken. Facebook, linkedin blogs, wikis, online forums and message. The standards of conduct generally do not prevent employees from discussing or sharing government information that is publicly available. Employee social media guidelines 8 social media policy checklist make sure your social media policy covers all legal aspects, but is still easy to read and approachable for employees minimize the use of legal jargon get input feedback from multiple departments, not just marketing and legal. The social media guidelines are designed to advance the aps brand and staffers personal brands on social networks. Guidance on the personal use of social media by department.