Last post I discussed how so many in the online community over share information with their friends and followers. For the most part, this occurs on Facebook, as I elaborated on a week or so ago.
This week, my blog discusses the real world consequences to this phenomenon. According to this Huffington Post article, posted this morning, there are six major things recruiters (and employers) DO NOT want to see on social media. Read the article, here.
Posts about drugs, alcohol, sex and swearing will get you no where fast in the process of recruitment, as well as on the road to your next job or promotion. Even swearing and spelling can earn you a bad impression.
If you Google, "should employers be able to hire based on Facebook posts", you'll find this. Employers are encouraged to check social media posts to ensure that they are hiring the best employee for the job.
According to Forbes, checking prospective employees' social media activity can tell you exactly who to give the job. This article states that Facebook not only can show you these red flags (such as drugs, profanity and lying) but it can also give you some insight into whether or not they're the right fit and can even give you an inkling into how good at their job they'll be. Makes sense, right? Someone who constantly complains on Facebook may not have the work ethic and positive attitude a boss is looking for.
Many people, however, argue that employers and scouts should not be allowed to see these personal posts. What do you think? Are Facebook posts, Tweets and Instagram posts private if we put them out there for the world to see? Should we be allowed this privacy? There is always the option of making your accounts private, but then that poses the question of, "what are you hiding?"
What do YOU think??
This is a great topic to write about, because it is a topic that is occurring more and more in today's world. My opinion on it is that if you have your profile out there for people to see, then employers should be able to look at it. The hard question is how much can they actually judge from your profile, about who you really are. Even though you make some posts, and may have some pictures, are they really able to judge who you are? I really do not think that they can. This is a really tough question, that will have many opinions to it.
ReplyDeleteI agree that someone who constantly complains on Facebook may not have the work ethic and positive attitude a boss is looking for. We need to wizen up about every thing that we are so insistent of posting on these public sites. The argument that people are bringing up that employers shouldn’t be allowed to access these sites is the same as saying that they shouldn’t trust the references you’ve given them. Are you not being completely honest in your posts online? Do they not truly reflect who you are and how you act? If not, maybe it is you that needs to take a look at yourself rather than being worried how someone will perceive what you have posted. Email, Facebook, etc. are PERMANENT. Get it into your head that if you are constantly political, sexual, using profanity, etc, you will be viewed as that type of person. If you don’t want that perception of yourself, do as the Huffington Post article you referenced states “…keep it out of your social networking stream.”
ReplyDeleteThe first article from the Huffington Post was interesting to read. It was interesting to see that grammar and spelling affected the recruiters. This is understandable when looking for new employees and I see a lot of people being lazy in their posts on Facebook or wherever and make abbreviations for everything. Usually on Facebook and other new, new media's, you will find who the person really is. Looking for potential employees on Facebook is weird to think at first, but makes sense. If someone is always unhappy and complaining, that person is someone you don't want working at your business. I would say that nothing is private once it is on the internet. If you are willing to put swearing, rude remarks or other unhappy posts on the social media, then it just shows what kind of person you are and what expectations you have.
ReplyDeleteI think it is very interesting that so many companies check Facebook for competent employees. As much as I would love to say that Facebook should be private and there is no reason for employers to use this against people, the restaurant I work at just fired someone because he was bragging on his Facebook about taking shots right before coming to work. Not the most intelligent kid because he has a bunch of co-workers on Facebook and none of us want someone who is drunk around while we are working. My opinion has rapidly changed as I have gotten older (not that I am old by any means) because I used to put my 19 year old crazy pictures on Facebook and now, even if there is profanity in something I am tagged in I tend to untag myself. I have younger cousins and family on Facebook and I'd prefer to not have them look at my page and see a poor role model. Same goes for employers. I would never post anything that would make them consider not hiring me.
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