Should you be fired for what you post on social media sites

Can you get fired for what you post online? In October 2010, Mariana Cole-Rivera, a domestic violence advocate at the group Hispanics United of Buffalo, began the Facebook thread that would get her fired. Cole-Rivera and four of her co-workers who'd responded to her post had lost their jobs. Their boss said their Facebook thread violated HUB's harassment policy by disparaging a co-worker. The Facebook post said that, â€Å"Lydia Cruz, who is one of their co-workers, felt that the group wasn't helping their clients enough at the Hispanics United of Buffalo.Cole-Rivera responded to this by saying, â€Å"IVe about had it! and she also wrote, â€Å"My fellow coworkers how do you feel? † Within minutes, HUB colleagues began posting supportive comments. â€Å"What the Hell,† one wrote, â€Å"we don't have a life as is, said one, and what else can we do, the others wrote. † After they were fired, the workers took their case to the National Labor Relations Board, the f ederal agency charged with interpreting and enforcing U. S. labor law.A Judge sided with them, but now the case is on appeal. There have been more than a few stories in the news about employees being fired because of what they posted online. People need to ealize that when you use your work computer for any personal business whether it is good or bad, can get you in trouble, or even cost you your Job, especially, if the company has guidelines on computer use on the Job. Dan Prywes, an expert in labor and employment law, in Washington, D. C. explains that â€Å"Employers are within their rights to limit social networking site access, â€Å"Dan also said that, â€Å"you need to be prepared for the consequences when you post online.If a small-business owner sees something unsavory written about themselves or their company online, they can call their workers in and talk with them about it. But whether or not you can take action and fire them is dependent on state law, outside of a wr itten contract or clause at public companies, employment is at-will. My question is: What are your rights when it comes to talking about work online? Should you be allowed to say what you want?Recently, the National Labor Relations Board issued a series of rulings and advisories that have made it illegal for employers to fire anyone who casts the company in an untavorable light online. The NLRB says employees nave a right to discuss work conditions freely and without fear of retribution, whether the discussion takes place at the office or on Facebook. However, not all work-related speech is protected. For example, your employer can still fire you if you post something negative about a client or customers on Facebook. In my opinion, if you don't have anything good to say, don't say it at all.