(After registering, confirmation, instructions & reminders will be emailed to you directly from our Conference Service Provider: gotowebinar@citrixonline.com)
The Acting General Counsel of the National Labor Relations Board (Board) has issued a complaint alleging that an employee was unlawfully terminated for posting negative comments about her supervisor on a personal Facebook page. The complaint asserts that comments made by an employee on the world’s most popular social networking site are “protected, concerted activity” under the National Labor Relations Act (Act).
An employee of American Medical Response of Connecticut was asked to respond to a customer complaint about her performance. The employee, upset, posted a comment on her Facebook page referring to her supervisor as a “17," which is company parlance for a mental patient. This remark in turn prompted other employees to comment about the supervisor. The employee in question then posted further negative remarks about the supervisor.
Upon learning of the employee’s Facebook comments, the employer terminated the employee for violating its blogging and internet policy, which broadly prohibits making disparaging, discriminatory or defamatory comments when discussing the Company or the employee's superiors, co-workers and/or competitor and which prohibited depicting the company in any way over the internet without company permission.
The complaint alleges both that the discharge violates the Act and, separately, that the Company’s policies, standing alone and irrespective of the discharge, interfere with its employees’ exercise of their right to engage in protected concerted activity.
The Board is just starting to grapple with the application of the Act to social media. Based on current law, the Board's Acting General Counsel has alleged the employer’s policies to be overly broad.
Speaker:
John Sarno Esq.
Employers Association of New Jersey
Registrations Fees:
$55 for EANJ and N.J. State Chamber Members (unlimited registrations per company)
$95 Non-Members (unlimited registrations per company)
Long distance phone charges will apply
(After registering, confirmation, instructions & reminders will be emailed to you directly from our Conference Service Provider: gotowebinar@citrixonline.com)