Employers checking to see if one posts on websites..

[ArenaBoy]

Such as this. I just learned this the other day. I was talking to my mom about blogging about SCs and she told me that at the arena they hire guys to check to see if employees do that. A waste of time and money I think. Anyway, what are your opinions on employers doing that? Mine is that we all have a right to do that because we can talk about our work events to friends and not get fired for it but post it on the internet and it's a big deal all of a sudden. Just something that makes me wonder.

[Ryu]

well if you're badmouthing your employer and making others not want to shop or work there then yes its a problem
but if you're just talking about sucky customers without mentioning the employer i dont see the problem
it also depends on the company/industry, some are more sensitive to public opinion than others
take me for an example, the movie theater, people arent going to care as long as they get the food and get in in a timely manner if i'm happy or not, at least not most people
but, i dunno just guessing, barnes and nobles vs borders, if one has a ton of employees posting negatively people might decide to go to the other, just a guess though

[Rapscallion]

There are perhaps three moderators here who know the name of the company where I work, and maybe one or two more. If a cow-irker stumbled across this place, there are few who could recognise a colleague. However, I always take great care to obfuscate where I actually am. It's basic Internet security.

In a way, it's sometimes easier for employees of larger chains, as you can say you were serving someone their burger and anyone searching would have to wade through the flotsam and debris of the Internet to find that you hadn't mentioned which of the chains you worked for.

Rapscallion

[lordlundar]

And that's why we encourage the anonymity approach here. Do not say where you work, and they can't prove you posted here complaining about them.

There's no restriction to saying where you work, as long as you simply are venting. We have had a few people here who were banned simply because they badmouthed everything about where they used to work. When it comes to company policy, you take your chances. Some pieces of advice.

1. No baseless badmouthing - Ventings fine, but if someone works in the same company, don't post in their topics to simply badmouth the company. Quick ban there.

2. Follow Company policy - If they say something is confidential, then it is. If they find out you put it here, raps and the others will honour a removal request and you're on your own.

3. At work posting - This is delicate. Some companies don't give a damn under certain circumstances (see above), some block access as a matter of policy, (mine blocks anything that can be a problem in public), and some if they see you on here at work, will fire you.

In my case, I can't visit at work due to hardware restrictions, but on my own time is just that. Provided I don't break the above rules, my managers don't care. I tell them I come here as stress relief.

[friendofjimmyk]

This is an interesting topic. Most of my posts are written while I am sitting @ my desk during down time. There are at least 3 other co-workers of mine on here. (I think I have the most posts out of us all...one only lurks around - he must come out of the shadows!!)

I know for a fact that our computers are monitored often. They banned myspace after it was discovered nearly the entire floor was on it. Understandable...myspace I am sure is not all that entirely safe for a corporate server.

I never mention my company by name. I have put some details out there about the company...and anyone, if they really wanted to, could put the details together and try to figure it out.

Sometimes, I don't know what I would do without this site at work! I am not sure how I managed with out it! It definitely helps with stressful situations as they happen. I can write about them rather than choking myself with the phone cord or breaking my computer.

[Knightmare]

When I worked at RadioShack, it was a big no-no to post at THIS SITE <---- Click here to see the site.

Corporate actually paid people to go to the site and try to figure out who was who and at what store they worked. Some people did get fired for posting at the site. Some LPMs even went on the site and went fishing for information. DMs and RMs did the same thing. There is an injunction against the website. Read the second page and see!

I used to post on the site frequently. I haven't been there in a while. When I left the Shack, I left the whole thing behind me.

Now I post on here, and I honestly don't care if someone from work knows it's me. I tell many co-workers about this site. I don't post any company secrets or anything that will cause harm to the company. I vent and rant, just like many people here.

So what is my opinion on corporations looking for these kinds of sites? I feel that, on one hand, it is necessary. You don't want employees or former employees divulging company secrets. On the other hand, it is a waste of time and money. The internet is just too big to monitor.

We, as Americans, have a First Amendment RIGHT to say what we want, when we want (yeah, I know there's more to it than that).

What bothers me the most is about the companies that do look for these sites. They are busy looking for people that complain. Well, most employees on these sites do. So why fire them? Why not think of these sites as giant suggestion boxes? Why not find out what bothers the employees, and change what you can? At RSsucks.com there was a topic on how to make RadioShack a better company, and most of the discussions were reasonable and heartfelt. But did corporate listen? Of course not. Now look where they are...

Ah, I'm sorry if this wasn't exactly coherent. I'm just getting back from my 3rd overnight shift, and my mind isn't exactly sharp. I can't wait til this week is over.

[MadMike]

Wow, talk about having nothing better to do.

I agree with the others -- best thing to do is not name names, including your own, if need be.

I don't post the names of any of the retail establishments where I worked, even though I haven't worked retail in 17 years, and the one place went out of business 15 years ago, so I probably wouldn't have anything to worry about. Still, you just never know...

[protege]

Whenever I've talked about my past jobs, I always say something like "the bank," "scout camp," etc. The only place I refer to is Hechinger's. They went bankrupt 10 years ago, so there's not much they can do about it.

[Becks]

I have mentioned a place or two that I've worked at by name. I might've named my current place or employment once or twice, but I don't think I've ever done any hardcore bashing of it.

I've told my department manager about this site, and he thinks it's hilarious.

[MystyGlyttyr]

The folks here don't care. In fact, it's not at all uncommon for me, after something particularly weird happens, to announce "this is going on my forum!" I haven't named the paper (though if someone cared enough to really do their math, they could figure it out) and frankly, almost none of my complaints are AGAINST the paper, just the psychos I end up dealing with while I'm there.

Now, any of the places I've been forced out of or who unjustly fired me, I have no problems with naming because I'm very vocal about what was wrong with those maniacs. I just didn't name them on here because it didn't seem like it particularly mattered WHO they were so much as what they did.

[Lace Neil Singer]

None of the places I've worked at or my current place are mentioned by name; I just call them generic names like "the supermarket."

[Mr. Rude]

OOooo....I didn't know RSS was back .Time for some browsing.

[ShockQueen]

Heh.....the worst place to post at work and talk smack about your company is any internet provider. Why? They know who you are, can track your IP, get the IP information from the board you post at (court order), and then nail you to the wall with it. Several people at the last place I was at found that out the hard way (raises hand), but thankfully the place I'm at now is so much better, it's like night and day! It's just the customers that are so stupid is causes the death of innocent brain cells, so I'm happy AND safe now! Yay!

[SuperDan]

A recent update in my company's associate's handbook prohibits "blogging about the company". I highly doubt they would enforce that unless the offense involved sharing other private or proprietary information. It's not like I'm posting profit margins or sale statistics on here. I don't even mention the name of my current employer on here (although if you've visited my LiveJournal I mention it on occasion on there). I've shared the URL of this site with other co-workers including managers at my current job (as far as I know nobody has actually become active here) and I've never so much as been given a verbal warning about the blogging rule. Like I said earlier, I don't mention the name or location of my store here, but if you do the right clicking it isn't hard to figure out. If you want to figure out who I am, my avatar is me and my real first name is part of my username, and again further clues to my identity lie in my MySpace and LiveJournal. I just don't post any private information about my company and it seems everyone is ok with that.

[powerboy]

Where I work, it is alright, if I post here. Hell, I do not post anything that I am not suppose too. Plus, I never mention the name of the store.