Tag Archives: NLRB

The Drowning Pool

Drowning Repeat after me.  "Facebook and the water cooler are the same thing."  Actually, Facebook is worse, because the water cooler doesn't take notes – it just sits there.  Looks like we may have our precedent-setting case, folks.  Yep, somebody got fired for mouthing-off about her boss on Facebook (or at least that's the claim she's making through the National Labor Relations Board.  Shockingly, her employer cites other grounds).

Gossipping about bosses will never stop, but once again, if you post on Facebook – or include your opinions in email or text – you'd better be fine with the idea of your boss seeing them.

And while venting your spleen about your boss is technically not a fireable offense, think it through a little more.  The boss is going to claim that you're insubordinate – and produce your Facebook posts to show your animosity – which isn't going to help you.  Note to the recently unemployed; comparing your boss to a psychiatric patient probably isn't recommended (whether it's true or not).

But therein lies the interesting twist in this particular case.  The fired employee is putting her own Facebook posts in play to show bias on behalf of her employer.  I guess the court will ultimately decide whether this gambit yields results.  This is one to keep an eye on.