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Social Networking in the Workplace

By William C. Martucci, Kristen A. Page, and Jennifer K. Oldvader
November 24, 2009

In today's world, information flows freely at the click of a mouse. Nearly 200 million blogs, or approximately one for every 30 people on earth, can chronicle the lives of Internet users in publicly accessible posts. Nineteen million Twitter users can complain about their jobs instantly by “Tweeting.” A reported 33% of Americans online are on Facebook, where they can upload embarrassing or questionable digital photos. Technology connects ' and exposes ' us like never before.

This exponential growth has significant consequences for the workplace. Not only may employees be accessing such sites at work, creating a drag on productivity, they may be using social networking and blogging sites to harass co-workers, criticize their supervisors, disclose company trade secrets, or simply discuss controversial topics in a manner that may be identified with the company. With all of these possibilities and more, it is not surprising that, in a 2007 nationwide survey from the American Management Association and ePolicy Institute, one-third of employers reported that they had fired an employee for misusing the Internet.

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