Most companies have thrown in the towel on social media bans, according to Mike Wakeling, a partner in the employment department of Stratford-upon-Avon-based Lodders Solicitors.
Instead they are cracking down wherever use of the medium is deemed to potentially bring the business into disrepute.
Mr Wakeling said: “You can’t be playing Big Brother every minute of every working day. It just isn’t practical.
“Staff are going to access social media sites during business hours – for better or worse these are now part of the national culture and enormously popular.
“After all, do you stop employees making and taking calls on their own mobile phones? How do you know whether the call is personal or business?
“Firms just have to go with the flow and accept the world has moved on.”
But what companies could do, Mr Wakeling said, was put clear guidelines in place … and get tough if these were breached.
He noted there had been a number of high profile cases where the issue had come under the spotlight, including that of an HR consultant who on his LinkedIn profile had ticked a box to indicate he was interested in other career opportunities, much to the fury of his firm.
“When it comes to social media, employees should not expect to have their cake and eat it. Be it in work time or in private, if they use social media inappropriately to the detriment of the company or in a fashion that outrages society, bringing shame on the business, then they should not be at all surprised if they subsequently lose their job.”
But he stressed: “Set out the policy in black and white so staff are aware what is acceptable and what is not and make sure they understand the potential consequences of breaching that policy.”
The alternative, said Mr Wakeling, was to risk losing out at employment tribunals, resulting in an expensive pay-off.
