Can You Terminate an Employee for Social Media Posts?

The First Subpoena of the U.S. Constitution protects you from the government interfering with your spoken communication – meaning you can typically express opinions (fifty-fifty if they are offensive) without being arrested or charged with a crime. But that does not mean you can say whatever y'all want online without suffering consequences. It is an oft-cited misconception that freedom of expression (protected by the Showtime Amendment) ways yous can say whatever you desire, whenever you desire. Sadly, this myth frequently leads people to post comments on social media they later on regret.

Private companies and employers can field of study or fire an employee for what they post on social media. There are, nevertheless, a few exceptions to this rule.

In full general, employers cannot fire you for posting:

• Truthful statements about working conditions, like harassment or unsafe working conditions.
• Comments that betoken your involvement in joining or supporting a union.
• Messages to other co-workers suggesting that they contact a lawyer to go data about workplace rights.
• Demographic data like your race, sex, age, religious affiliation.

In this mail service, we'll discuss whether employers can burn you for what yous postal service on social media and give examples of what not to postal service online. Then we'll take a brief look at whether criticizing your employer is illegal and what to practice with your social media if yous're in the midst of a lawsuit.

Let's get-go past answering the about important question, can you lot actually go fired for what you mail service on social media?

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If you have been experiencing issues at work, such as discrimination, wrongful suspension, or wrongful termination, and accept come under burn down for a social media post while others have gone unpunished for similar posts, get a free consultation with our legal team.

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Tin I Get Fired for What I Say on Social Media?

In nearly U.Due south. states, employers can discipline or burn employees for any lawful reason. Of course, this begs the question: what is lawful and what is not?

Information technology's easiest to start with a brief discussion of when employers cannot burn down or field of study a worker. If you have a contract with your employer that stipulates y'all can just by fired for crusade, you tin can generally enforce those provisions in court. Examples of cause might include excessive tardiness, missing work, or failing to perform your chore in accord with the contract. Y'all also cannot exist terminated for blowing the whistle on unlawful action (like sexual harassment, discrimination, or crimes in the workplace). Moreover, employees cannot exist terminated solely because of their race, national origin, gender, organized religion, disability, historic period, or pregnancy.

While every case is different, employers, in general, can fire employees for what they postal service on social media. Especially if you were posting to social media during work hours, employers have broad elbowroom to discipline y'all for spending your work time socializing online.

Your Social Media Could Too Foreclose You from Getting Hired

At least social 70% of employers check media accounts to screen candidates before hiring. Screening job candidates via social media is even more than common than checking up on employees that have already been hired. To make matters worse, potential employers will rarely tell an employee why they passed them over, so you lot may non even know if your social media is to blame for missing out on a job opportunity.

Some industries, like IT, are fifty-fifty more decumbent to check an bidder'due south social media. In a nutshell, yous should guard your social media if you are in the job market, but y'all should really protect your online reputation if you are in a field where tech know-how is function of your task description.

Examples of Posts That Led to Termination

You lot don't have to look far to observe articles criticizing "cancel culture" and holding people accountable for online comments. The are countless examples of individuals getting fired for posts made to their personal social media accounts. While there are plenty of things you can do to boost your online presence and reputation, there are definitely some types of content you should avoid sharing. Permit's take a look at some newsworthy examples of social media posts that led to individuals getting fired.

Posts with racist connotations
The now-infamous Justine Sacco made a devil-may-care Tweet, "Going to Africa. Hope I don't become AIDS. But kidding. I'thou white!" While she posted this annotate on her personal Twitter account, during vacation, her employer found the post offensive enough to warrant termination.

While you may retrieve you are complimentary to express your own personal opinions on social media, employers have a responsibility to protect all employees from a hostile work environment. Because of workplace anti-discrimination laws, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has said that racist or sexist online speech is not protected. In a nutshell, if your employer could be sued for making the statement you are about to brand on social media, they can probable fire yous for making the statement.

Misleading or false posts
An employee of an ambulance visitor fabricated a Facebook post saying his employer's ambulances were broken down and dangerous. After the company investigated the thing, they discovered the ambulance was not broken down – and fired the employee for making false and misleading posts about their business.

Offensive opinions on topical events
After a mass shooting at a country music concert in Las Vegas, a CBS employee posted that she had "no sympathy for the victims because country music fans are often republican gun toters." As you might imagine, this post did non go over well for the employee…she was fired and did non have any legal recourse for wrongful termination.

Another woman was fired from a non-profit after posting a photo on Facebook showing her giving the centre finger next to a "silence and respect" sign at Arlington National Cemetery. While Arlington Cemetery is not a new or topical locale, it is a identify of reverence and respect. Veterans and their loved ones took great offense to the brandish of "disrespect," even going and so far every bit circulating a petition calling for her termination. The adult female'due south not-profit employer fired her, the other employee who took the photograph, and issued an apologetic statement. The field of study of the photo later deleted the mail and made a public amends, simply it was too late to salve her career.

Confidential or proprietary data
If you take access to confidential data, such as other employees' addresses or pay rates, you should not share that information with others. Let'south say you work in the Man Resources Department and have admission to a new rent'due south (we'll call her Jane) salary details. Y'all think Jane'due south salary is too high, and so you postal service a comment on Facebook detailing that Jane, a recent college graduate, was just offered a bacon of $75,000 a year. This could land yous in hot water – because only Jane has the correct, if she desires, to share the details of her task offer. Plus, yous came across the information but after looking at Jane's confidential personnel file – meaning you abused a position of trust when you lot shared Jane'due south information.

Also, sharing your company'southward merchandise secrets or proprietary information, like posting details almost a new product that has yet to be advertised or hitting the market place, is a no-no.

Negative comments about your clients or customers
This one nearly goes without maxim: bad-mouthing a client or customer online volition probably not be well-received by your employer.

Posts that testify you lied to your employer
If you lot call in sick, it is not wise to later post a picture of yous at an amusement park having a fun and carefree day. Nearly everyone has had to take a "mental health mean solar day" at some point, but it is best to continue the details of your twenty-four hours to yourself. Fifty-fifty if you practice non think your employer will e'er find out, information technology is best to err on the side of caution, because you would be surprised how apace news can spread in the workplace.

Racy posts
ESPN commentator Paul Pierce was fired near immediately after posting an Instagram Live video with exotic dancers. The video was not well-received by ESPN's parent company, the Walt Disney Company, which is well-known for its family-friendly programming. To make matters worse, Pierce and others in the video were not wearing masks or post-obit COVID protocols. Whether it was the racy nature of the video or the failure to comply with COVID protocols that pushed the video over the edge is difficult to tell at this bespeak. Chances are that the combination of the two issues was too much for ESPN and the Walt Disney Company to withstand.

Posts that display illegal activity
It's not merely racy activity that tin land yous in hot water. Posting pictures, comments or videos of illegal activity are bound to get you fired (at the very least). A Colorado instructor lost her chore after posting about nude photos and challenge she got high in the staff parking lot of her schoolhouse. While recreational marijuana use is legal in Colorado, posting pictures of oneself smoking marijuana on work premises does not go over well with employers. It is still illegal to have marijuana on school property, despite Colorado's lax attitude toward marijuana in other locations. Fortunately for the teacher, local police force did not file charges – but she may have trouble finding employment at another schoolhouse.

Is it illegal to criticize your employer on social media?

While expressing your opinion online is typically legal, that does not always mean y'all should mail everything that comes to mind. As mentioned earlier, you can confront severe consequences for social media posts fifty-fifty if they do not break the law. In general, comments nearly your working conditions, wages, or wedlock support are perfectly legal (as long equally they aren't lies). But rants about your employer, like how a particular managing director has B.O. and bad breath, aren't protected spoken language.

Likewise, criticizing your employer for post-obit the law (like posting that you "hate how your boss keeps hiring minorities") could necessitate an employment investigation and termination. Forth the same lines, if yous threaten violence or keen co-workers on social media, your employer might have an obligation to investigate your actions because you are potentially creating a hostile work surround.

What should I do with my social media if I am in the centre of a lawsuit?

Social media profiles, comments, and messages are frequently used as evidence in lawsuits (from family police matters to employment matters and everything in between). If y'all are in the midst of whatever type of lawsuit, it is all-time to strictly limit your privacy settings.

While switching your social media profiles to "individual" comes with many benefits, information technology will not help you completely escape liability for what you lot post. If, for instance, you lot utilise for Workers Compensation saying you were severely injured at work, and then mail videos of yourself dancing wildly at a concert – others may employ that video confronting yous. Even if yous post comments on your private, personal social media account for friends and family to run into, they may share or screenshot your annotate.

During discovery, opposing parties tin likewise request access to social media posts, even if you have fabricated your account private. In fact, deleting comments, images, or posts that are pertinent to the litigation at mitt could atomic number 82 to serious repercussions. Yous tin exist sanctioned for destroying evidence that is material to your case, so you should discuss whatsoever social media activities with your lawyer before doing something that could get your case dismissed (or worse).

That existence said, yous should not accept friend requests from people you do not know and colleagues who might serve as witnesses in your lawsuit. As a full general rule of thumb, you should be very selective virtually everything you post online in one case a lawsuit has been filed. You might exist surprised how hands people tin can twist your words or read too much into an otherwise benign mail.

We Can Aid You lot Navigate Social Media and the Workplace

The attorneys at Jackson Spencer accept decades of experience standing upwards for workers' rights. We've seen the serious consequences that can stem from social media posts and desire to empower employees to apply social media without losing their job. If you lot have been disciplined or terminated for something you posted on social media, contact us for a gratis consultation. Nosotros can help you determine if you lot have a claim and recommend next steps.

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