Social media is more ubiquitous than ever. Along with this near-omnipresence comes a complicated set of issues that HR professionals must navigate when overseeing a workforce—including establishing repercussions for workers who violate your company’s social media policies.
With this in mind, how can HR develop a fair policy for team members? Read on to find out what you need to know about evaluating and refreshing your employee social media policy.
According to market and consumer data firm Statista, there were more than 233 million social media users in the U.S. in 2020, which equates to roughly more than two-thirds of all Americans on social platforms of some kind. In other words, chances are that almost everyone at almost every workplace uses social media in some form or fashion.
However, social media use isn’t just the issue. With political tensions high and companies refocusing diversity and inclusivity efforts, people are especially sensitive now to what’s actually said and shared on social media.
To effectively navigate these issues, HR professionals must first evaluate their existing social media policies.
Depending on the culture of a business, its industry, and its stakeholders, some employers may tolerate a wider or narrower spectrum of opinions expressed publicly. However, there are some common factors that HR can consider when beginning to evaluate a social media policy. These include:
If a social media policy is written well, it should still be relevant regardless of when it was first published, even if it hasn’t been reviewed it in several years. But this might not be the case. Some small or new businesses might not even have a social media policy at all, which serves as an excellent opportunity to start from scratch.
Social media policies differ from one company to another because no two employers are completely alike. As a result, HR should develop a social media policy that’s a good fit for its organization. It should align with the company culture and should be broad enough to apply to any number of possible scenarios.
More specifically, fair social media policies are flexible, broad, and encourage common sense. By developing policies around these three principles, HR can better prepare for social media issues that may crop up, no matter the platform.
Two additional social media policy best practices include: