Blogs

Does your social media policy protect your mission?

In January 2013 a nursing home worker was fired for a Facebook post on his personal page after he wrote that he would like to "slap the ever loving bat snot" out of a patient. He also went on to write that being insulted by residents made him less motivated to "make sure your call light gets answered every time."

The nursing home was alerted to the post after a nursing professor saw the post and shared it with the administration.

Although there have been a number of firings of nursing staff based off of their social media posts over the past few years, many of them deal with patient confidentiality. In this case, the employee's violation of the nursing home's social media policy--  which he had signed with the receipt of his first paycheck-- was what protected the nursing home from having to pay costly unemployment benefits to an employee who put patient safety and the reputation of the facility on the line.

If you haven't already, it may be time to review your current social media policy to ensure that your mission, and reputation, are protected from similar situations.

Read more about the case in this article by the Nonprofit Quarterly.

More Blog Entries

HR Question: Temporary Employees

Q: Does an employer need to provide temporary agency employees with a letter clearly...

HR Question: Mileage Reimbursement

Q: Are there any limits on the amount an employer can reimburse employees for mileage...