The Internet and social media make so much of our lives more convenient and faster. However, what you might not realize is that even when you take the time to enable all the privacy settings on your social media account and avoid (or remove) inappropriate photos, your job is still at risk.
Even the most innocent or innocuous of comments can serve as cause for you to lose your job, receive a reprimand, or miss out on a promotion. The moral of the story is to be careful. Let’s look at some examples.
Innocent comments on
What you might consider to be an innocent comment could cost you your job. Imagine tweeting or updating your status to tell your friends and followers that you’re having the longest day ever. If your update occurs during the middle of the workday, you might face repercussions.
Additionally, you might not think it’s a big deal to post about how excited you are to get your such-and-such degree in a few months so you can finally look for a job in the career you love, but your employer might not appreciate that seemingly innocent comment. It could be grounds for firing if you make a public statement that appears to express dissatisfaction with your job.
They know what you do
You might not have friends in your workplace on your social media accounts, but if they have a mutual friend, they might be able to see your information no matter how private you think it is.
Say you call in sick because you want to go shopping with friends. You might not post anything about it on Facebook, but all it takes is one mutual friend of someone you work with — and it’s a small world — to see that a friend posted a photo of herself shopping with you in the picture to cost you your job.
It doesn’t matter what industry or field you’re in, whether it’s health care, education, marketing, or anything in between. If your boss or HR department or coworkers can see what you’re doing online, you might put your job in jeopardy.
Social media is great fun. However, if you don’t know the rules and regulations surrounding it at work, you might find out it’s not so much fun anymore. Familiarize yourself with the handbook at work and make sure that not even one comment, picture, or activity in which you are involved can be misconstrued as an “I hate my job” remark.
