Social networking during work hours on the increase

More employees than ever before are spending a portion of their workday connecting to social networks according to the 2013 report “National Business Ethics Survey of Social Networkers: New Risks and Opportunities at Work”.

The report found 72 percent of workers surveyed were spending some of their workday on social networks, with 20 percent of workers who said they put in an hour or more on personal social networks!

More than half of the workers surveyed said they post information on their personal social network sites about work projects and comment on their company if it appears in the news. This can potentially be both a marketing and branding boon for employers, or a potential confidentiality nightmare!

HR professionals and employers can minimize the potential risks of “plugged-in” employees by developing a social networking policy that:
– Ties into the company’s ethics and values statements.
– Reinforces policies on Non-disclosure of confidential information.
– Is reinforced with training.
– Uses social networking to improve in-house communication between employees and company leadership.

What more can an employer do?
The study suggested that employers should assume that most employees are likely to spend at least a few minutes of the workday online for personal reasons. A policy against any personal use of the web or social media sites would be ill-advised, especially when employees have access via smart phones and other devices. Having a common-sense policy and managing “by exception” is generally recommended.

EctoHR, Inc. is ready to assist your company with all aspects of HR, including personal social media use on the job. Contact a team member at EctoHR by calling 810.534.0170, or by email to hr@ectohr.com.