The perils of social media

How do employees manage the social media activities of their employees when those activities potentially bring the company into disrepute?

Social media allows us to keep in touch with friends and family, reconnect with people we haven’t seen in years. For many people, social media is the place where they receive their news and the place where they discuss current issues and events. I can’t imagine my working, personal or day-to-day life without it.

However - and, be honest - you knew there was a however coming - social media is not without its dark side. That news you consume is based upon your previous preferences and is increasingly lopsided. If your political beliefs lean left or right, the news you receive will lean the same way, emphasising and re-emphasising your views and beliefs until you exist in an echo chamber or a bubble. The platforms themselves track your every move and every post. They know more about you than your nearest and dearest. All the better to sell you stuff via advertising. And that “reconnecting with old friends” has - on numerous occasions - led to a rekindling of relationships, resulting in affairs and divorces.

But there is another aspect to social media that construction companies are having to confront with increasing regularity. A few months ago, Collins Earthworks was forced to comment after one of its workers - driving a works van - was caught on camera racially abusing someone at the roadside. This past weekend, a Wates employee posted an offensive Tweet following the death of a football supporter at the Hillsborough Stadium. Wates responded quickly and the man in question was fired.

These are not isolated incidents – Kier had to contend with the same thing after one of its employees was caught making racist gestures at a football match. Despite this, such incidents are not tied specifically to the demolition and construction sector. But it is a problem that is on the rise.

Now, there is a bit of me that thinks Wates largely dodged a bullet; not once, but twice. Not only did the incident result in the removal of an offensive individual; it also resulted in the removal of an individual too stupid to realise that they could be tracked and traced and tied to their employer.

Do I think people should be fired for something they said or write outside the workplace? Personally, yes I do. If you greet the death of a football fan with an offensive social media post, then you’re probably not the sympathetic and empathetic team player most employers are looking for.

But it is not as clear cut as that.

For many people, social media is still a relatively new phenomenon. The platforms themselves are often like the Wild West and many - specifically Twitter or X - allow and even encourage behaviour that would not be tolerated in real life.

Social media is a thing you learn by doing. There are no instruction manuals, no how-to guides. And while it would be nice to think that humanity and common decency would prohibit individuals from expressing offensive views on such a public platform, no-one has ever been told specifically what they can and cannot say.

In the world of celebrity and sport, stars are advised and coached on what to say and when. In fact, many have others post on their behalf to prevent them saying something that might land them in hot water with their employer or their sponsor.

Demolition and construction workers have no such filter; no such buffer.

And here’s a question. Are demolition and construction employers legally allowed to fire people over their use and misuse of social media? I am sure there are employment terms and conditions that prohibit hate speech in the workplace. I am sure there are rules and regulations governing face-to-face verbal and physical abuse. Perhaps some employers actually monitor the social media activities of their employees.

But, over the past few years, we have seen posts on Instagram and Facebook of on-site accidents that were removed by a disgruntled employer only after they had been circulated thousands or even millions of times. We have seen rumours and speculation over the financial wellbeing of certain companies circulating online. In some instances, those rumours were based in reality. But not always. And then there are the social media posts that cause offence or outrage that can be embarrassing to the employer.

In each of these cases, were the employees made aware of their responsibility to their employer?

Were those employees trained on what they could and could not, should and should not say in connection with their employer? Is there a clause within their terms of employment that specifically states that a racist or offensive outburst is a sackable offence? If not, my guess is that - legally at least - employers are on very shaky ground if they fire someone over a social media post.

The rise and rise of social media has coincided with the rise and rise of smart phone usage. Pretty much everyone now has a camera and video recorder on them ALL THE TIME. So if you do or say something offensive, it can be captured all too easily and used in evidence against you. If you act in an unsafe or unprofessional manner, your actions could be caught on camera and we have already seen numerous HSE prosecutions based on footage captured by neighbours.

We used to worry about Big Brother watching us. In the age of social media and smart phones and cameras, we should be just as worried about being watched by our neighbours, the public and even our fellow workers.

There is a solution, of course.

If we all treated others with the level of respect we would expect to receive, there would be nothing to worry about.

Unfortunately, as we’re seeing with increasing regulatory, some in our industry lack that revel of respect and restraint.