NLRB CONTINUES ITS FOCUS ON SOCIAL MEDIA

The NLRB is continuing to focus on social media communications and increasingly is taking the position that employers violate the NLRA when they sanction employees when social media postings to which other employees have access include discussions of terms and conditions of employment.

The NLRB recently filed a complaint against a BMW dealer whose salesman posted a criticism of the dealership on Facebook.  (He was discharged from employment -- the dealer has claimed that the discharge was for reasons other than the posting.)  The salesman was unhappy that the dealership served hot dogs to prospective clients at an event promoting the release of a new model.  He expressed a concern that the fare served would not properly herald the introduction of the car and may hurt sales.  As other employees had access to the Facebook account, the NLRB has taken the position that this communication related to a criticism of a term or condition of employment.

Bottom line -- great care must be taken when evaluating employee social media communications and possible employer disciplinary actions.