Recently, there has been a lot of discussion in the news over social media policies and labor violations, and our Austin employment attorneys would like to offer some guidance to small business owners regarding this matter.

As business owners know, it is critical to have employment policies in place that help to protect their business by making it unlawful for employees to disclose confidential information, trade secrets, or other vital company information.

With the widespread use of Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites, many employers and companies are worried about employees disclosing confidential business information on such social networking sites. This has led many companies like Target, GM, and others businesses to develop social media policies that have cautioned employees about “friending” colleagues, not to post anything misleading or offensive, and not to comment on pending legal matters.

However, these policies have received criticism, and the General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board issued a report released on May 30, 2012, deeming six social media policies unlawful.

For instance, employers shouldn’t bar their employees from discussing their own employment conditions on social networking sites. But one provision regarding harassment, discrimination, and retaliation was found lawful. If harassment and bullying isn’t permitted in the workplace, then it shouldn’t be acceptable between coworkers online.

If you are a small business owner, this might give you a starting point for developing your own social media policies in the workplace and what wording you should or should not use to avoid labor violations.

Would you like an Austin small business lawyer to review your employment policies or draft your business policies, agreements, and contracts so that they comply with Texas labor and employment laws? Please call the Posey Law Firm today toll-free at 888.269.1962 or locally at 512-646-0828 and we will be glad to provide assistance.