Employment Law Explained

Tag Archives: Twitter

The Beecroft Report: The Twitter Response

Posted on 26/10/2011 by Michael Scutt • 1 Comment

 

 

Twitter, well the bits of it I frequent anyway, have been abuzz with comments on the leaked Beecroft report which proposes abolishing unfair dismissal in capability cases.  I blogged on it this morning – click here.

Amidst all the tweets announcing the news there were some interesting and amusing comments, which I’ve collected below.  Most tweets I have seen are against the plans, a few make the point that the real issue is one of management and a few support it.  This is only a brief snapshot and I didn’t set out to try and gauge public opinion, although it seems those in favour are in the minority.

This is a preview of The Beecroft Report: The Twitter Response. Read the full post (855 words, 44 images, estimated 3:25 mins reading time)
Filed Under: News, unfair dismissal

Why Should Employers have a Social Media Policy?

Posted on 28/07/2011 by Michael Scutt • 1 Comment

social networking broken icons by demeters d3712v9 1 Why Should Employers have a Social Media Policy? social media internet usage employment policies bullying harassment

[This is the follow up piece to my article "Social Media in the Workplace" published on this blog last Saturday and, originally, in The Internet Newsletter for Lawyers/Law 2.0]

In my last article I wrote about the potential threats that face employers from the use by employees of social media and recommended that businesses have a social media policy.

To recap, the main threats to an employer from misuse of social media are;

  1. Reputational damage
  2. Breach of confidentiality
  3. Time wasting
  4. Liability to third parties
  5. Liability to other employees and to prospective employees.

This is a preview of Why Should Employers have a Social Media Policy?. Read the full post (1579 words, 3 images, estimated 6:19 mins reading time)
Filed Under: Bullying & Harassment, Employment Policies, Internet Usage, social media

CTB: Is it The End of the World As We Know It?

Posted on 24/05/2011 by Michael Scutt • 1 Comment

 

CTB has finally been named as the footballer taking on Twitter, following John Hemmings “outing” of him today in Parliament. You will already know the facts and history, so here are my thoughts on a case that clearly raises substantial issues affecting the issue of privacy, the constitutional settlement, the future shape of the media and, at its most extreme, the future of the nation state;

  1. It is wrong that an MP should hide behind parliamentary privilege in order to breach the terms of a court injunction. It threatens the separation of powers and undermines the credibility of the courts. John Hemmings has achieved his ambition of 15 minutes of fame.
This is a preview of CTB: Is it The End of the World As We Know It?. Read the full post (707 words, 2 images, estimated 2:50 mins reading time)
Filed Under: social media

Can You Joke In The Workplace?

Posted on 10/02/2011 by Michael Scutt • 7 Comments

If you make a lewd comment or joke at work, might you be in trouble? Following the case of Laura Bowater this week the answer is yes, you may be.

It doesn’t take the law any further forward than it was before but it does highlight how workplace situations can get out of hand.

Can You Joke In The Workplace? unfair dismissal social media news Ms  Bowater was a nurse at the end of her shift at the Central Middlesex Hospital.  She was called upon by a colleague to assist in restraining a naked male patient who was having an epileptic fit.  At some point in the process she ended up astride him, near his genitals and said “‘It’s been a few months since I have been in this position with a man underneath me”.

This is a preview of Can You Joke In The Workplace?. Read the full post (687 words, 2 images, estimated 2:45 mins reading time)
Filed Under: News, social media, unfair dismissal

Goodbye 2010

Posted on 22/12/2010 by Michael Scutt • 2 Comments
iStock 000006284593XSmall Goodbye 2010 miscellaneous stuff

Hello, my name is Vince ...

As 2010 storms out in a blizzard of snow and ice and 2011 lurks just behind Father Christmas, it’s time to write my valedictory message for the year. Ambassadors may no longer write their final thoughts on the country in which they have been living before jetting off because of wikileaks, but this blog has no such fears.

What of 2010?  Were you paying attention?  I wasn’t, not all of the time anyway, but when I was awake these were the issues that caught my eye.

This is a preview of Goodbye 2010. Read the full post (1628 words, 5 images, estimated 6:31 mins reading time)
Filed Under: Miscellaneous Stuff

Facebook “Joke” Turned Sour: Why Employers Need To Take Note

Posted on 30/07/2010 by Michael Scutt • 3 Comments

facebookjuly3images Facebook “Joke” Turned Sour: Why Employers Need To Take Note social media

The Metro newspaper reported on Wednesday how a student won £10,000 in damages from a former friend.  Raymond Bryce, a law student, failed to see the funny side of chef Jeremiah Barber’s post of a paedophiliac picture on his Facebook page with the words “ Ray, you like kids and you are gay so  bet you love this picture, Ha Ha”.  Bryce sued Barber in the High Court for libel and won damages.  Barber ended up with a large money Judgment against him, a conviction for circulating indecent images of children and 150 hours’ community service. This is yet another illustration of how some people seem to take leave of their senses when using social media.   What a thing to “joke” about!

This is a preview of Facebook “Joke” Turned Sour: Why Employers Need To Take Note. Read the full post (851 words, 3 images, estimated 3:24 mins reading time)
Filed Under: social media

40% of UK Employees Criticise Their Bosses on Facebook and Twitter

Posted on 22/05/2010 by Michael Scutt • 7 Comments

myjobgroupflatlogo1 40% of UK Employees Criticise Their Bosses on Facebook and Twitter social media According to a survey by the recruitment agency MyJobGroup.co.uk, compiled in conjunction with law firm Irwin Mitchell, 40% of UK employees admit to criticising their employers on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter.  Furthermore most staff had little or no idea of the legal implications of what they wrote online.  Click here for the press release.

The report contains some surprisingly large numbers, for instance;

  • 20% of employees admit to “lambasting” their employers online
  • 53% would support disciplinary action against fellow employees sticking the online boot into the workplace

This is a preview of 40% of UK Employees Criticise Their Bosses on Facebook and Twitter. Read the full post (262 words, 1 image, estimated 1:03 mins reading time)
Filed Under: social media

Twitterview tonight

Posted on 05/11/2009 by Michael Scutt • 0 Comments

For those of you on Twitter I am being twitterviewed tonight by 22Twts. If you haven’t come across one yet, a Twitterview is a series of (22) questions posed by Lance Godard and my responses, in real time, on Twitter.  Lance asks some really interesting and high-profile people to do his Twitterviews so I’m delighted to be asked to take part and be in such august company.

It starts at 20.00 GMT and please take a look when I will be revealing my deepest darkest secrets, or something, as well as talking about Dale Langley & Co and employment law.  I don’t think Hello or Ok magazines will be terribly interested though.

This is a preview of Twitterview tonight. Read the full post (126 words, estimated 30 secs reading time)
Filed Under: Miscellaneous Stuff, News, Uncategorized

Alex says it best …

Posted on 11/06/2009 by michaelscutt • 2 Comments

Following on from my recent post about the usefulness of Twitter, today’s cartoon by Alex in The Daily Telegraph provides his usual incision and wit into the subject of whether Twitter is any use at all.  I’m converted to it, albeit I don’t find nearly enough time to “tweet”. 

The recent poll I ran on this subject has given a resounding answer; most of you think Twitter is a waste of time. 

alex1106 1421436a2 Alex says it best ... miscellaneous stuff internet usage

Permanent link to this post (70 words, 1 image, estimated 17 secs reading time)
Filed Under: Internet Usage, Miscellaneous Stuff

Do you Twitter?

Posted on 30/04/2009 by michaelscutt • 0 Comments

And if you do, do you find it useful?  I’ve been “twittering” recently, getting up to speed on tweeting, retweeting and have installed tweetdeck and twitterberry on various bits of kit.  Like most people, I initially thought it was a waste of time but I’m slowly becoming converted to it. I can see that it is a very useful way of passing on snippets of information about what’s going on elsewhere, and some of the tweets are very amusing.  For instance check out @charonqc and his recent tweets on swineflu and wine flu.  Stephen Fry’s tweets, on the other hand, are a little disappointing.  I came across a tweet from @ukemploymentlaw today and she was of the view that twitter was, with the exception of her, completely uninteresting.  What do you think? I haven’t had a poll for a while, so here is one to make up for the absence;

Permanent link to this post (155 words, estimated 37 secs reading time)
Filed Under: Miscellaneous Stuff