Many companies have started to create blogging policies. Of course, this is still a little behind the curve as we now need Twitter and social networks to be addressed as well. Also, don’t worry about not following the conversation, people drift in and out all the time.

@benjustinthomas

I am not sure about specifics, but if there is a facebook group for Virgin Atlantic, it is possible that someone even reported the “chatter” to someone in management. Even though the conversation was within a group, does not mean that only those 13 people were in that group. There are lots of ways to have this kind of chat between friends. IM is the simplest, and there is very little chance of getting noticed unless IT is sniffing all traffic.

What you propose is interesting and seems like what could be a very good compromise: a contract between between the employer and the employee specifying some rules about what can be said and what not, in conversational media sites. If both agree on the contract, then it’s all valid IMH perspective. Make sure that the employees get some benefit for following the contract as they “cover the employer’s ass”.

@bethmanderson,

“What did we learn, Palmer?” said the bureau chief in the latest Coen bros film. I guess the lesson for that 21 year old is: “I shouldn’t party too hard if I’ve got to go to work next morning”. I don’t think he should have refrained himself from confessing in facebook. I also believe people shouldn’t give him too much a hard time for that episode. He got punished. He’s forgivable. IMO It’d be a better world if people would learn some lessons, then be corrected, and then be forgiven; rather than trying to save their asses through lies and hypocrisies. That said, I too sometimes have a hard time finding the guts to stick with honesty. But I don’t give up.

@Cliche,

Tough luck. I hope you got a new job meanwhile. If freedom of speech is something you hold dearly, then I hope you won’t refrain yourself from expressing yourself.
It’s not the first time I hear Apple does this to their employees. I really think Apple employees you should ask more benefits and some clear rules about dealing with conversational media sites.

I’m afraid I won’t be able to follow this stream much longer… Nice chatting. Important issue. Cheers.

I wish corporations would be more proactive about things like social networks and blogging. By giving some information to employees about what the boundaries are, could be helpful. I am not against freedom of speech, but it is a matter of common sense. If you post something bad about your employer or your customers, you should expect that there will be effects from that if it is known who you work for. There are a lot of topics that people can talk about. I talk about what I do for a living sometimes, but I do not make any references to my employer or customers.

This is an interesting subject. And I believe every social media user should meditate on it for a while. Blogging and commenting empowers the individuals. That’s a fact. Corporations cannot control this fact. They can fire people, but that’s not what I call control. My recommendation is that companies provide decent working conditions and some lov’un care. If so, 13 employees wouldn’t feel compelled to bitch around about their workplace. To hell with corporations, we’re talking about people here AND freedom of speech (within a reasonable sense of responsability -of course-). I will ALWAYS express my feelings and thoughts, and I’ll always feel good about it, and righteous too, as long as: a) I speak truly, b) there’s a genuine message I want to transmit.

Finally, and as an amusing suggestion related to the blowing off steam issue: How about creating a social site called http://blowoffsteam.com? A site precisely intended for people who want to, well… blow off some steam. After all, blowing off steam is a natural human emotion. People should have a place to do so. Me thinks that’d be healthy. And a place without all the bad habits too (drinking, gambling, prostitution, etc…).

Greetz,
Guillaume