The Ethical Dilemma Of Using Facebook As A Means For Hiring Decisions

Many individuals have resorted to social media to connect with friends or strangers alike. Social media has also encouraged people to display private conduct to the public. Many colleges and businesses have resorted to viewing an applicant’s social media for work force readiness. I believe this is a good strategy, because it can eliminate competition in the work place.

Private information that was previously segregated now becomes easily accessible to employers, colleagues, recruiters, and clients, among other perhaps unintended audiences” (Abril, 2012, para. 4). Yes, most social media sites attain privacy settings but one must always remember there are hiccups in everything on the internet and no guarantees leaks will not occur.

Facebook is the largest gateway to social media communication, allowing you to stay in touch with friends, family, and public. Therefore, if Jackson had concerns about a customer, the human resources department would have been a better option. They specialize in employee relation issues, while keeping all information confidential. In our business, we take pride in our image, while building trustworthy relations with all customers. Jackson’s behavior on social media could potentially harm the relationship with this customer, present and future customers. When one shares information on

“Why asking for a Job Applicant’s Facebook Password is Fair Game” by Alfred Edmond Jr. discusses on the argument whether or not an employer should have access to the Facebook account of their future employee. Edmond accounts for multiple events in his essay where asking Facebook password is a fair game, and also describes events where it’s not a fair game to ask for employee password. Inclusively, Edmond pivots on both views of the argument with great deal of explanation. Edmond explains argument on whether or not an employer should give access to their Facebook account with logic and his experience in the business sector.

A growing hot topic, and cause for concern is the increasing use of social media in the workplace. The landscape for communication has changed, and the line between personal and professional communications has been blurred. How will your employer manage the risks associated with the use of social media and at the same time, gain the benefits that this media form provides? While many employers were initially concerned that employees would use company time and equipment for socializing with friends, they are quickly learning that many social networks can also be used directly for work purposes.

Employers on our social media, this is a fact that everyone in this age accepts but do not necessarily like or want. Some people say it is okay to check social media when looking for who to hire, but this infringes on privacy rights. If an employer finds something discriminating on a profile and decides not to hire the person this is not okay, even though some may say it is because you want to know what you are getting into. An employer could find information that was not even true on social media, this would not work in favor of employment. It is not okay to check social media when employers are hiring because it invades privacy, discriminates and the information provided on the site could be false.

The purpose of this literary review is to enlighten my viewers of the importance of the ethical idea of companies crossing the lines of business with your personal life, when involving social media accounts. Most of my research has operated from the ATU library using the find it tool. Furthermost, the researched information use was from peer-reviewed research journal. I will discuss includes social media cons in the work environment, if it is ethical to get fired over a post, and laws that protect both parties. Social media includes an assortment of electronic communications—most commonly networking sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Myspace, Pinterest, Instagram, and the likes thereof. Social media also covers all forms of blogs, including Twitter (a micro-blog), wikis, online journals, diaries, personal newsletters, and World of Warfare and YouTube also are included under the umbrella term of social media (Lieber 2011).

Because adolescents are growing up with more access to social networking, texting and instant messaging on various sites have become prime means of communication. While this is not necessarily bad, many people feel the need to over-share things about their personal lives online. More and more people are using Facbeook and more and more employers are using Facebook to scope out potential employees. If there are inappropriate pictures and comments all over someone’s Facebook page, they are more likely to not receive the job. Some students get in trouble for things they post on Facebook and Twitter. Some users are beginning to notice this and have started deactivating their accounts to regain a sense of privacy. CNN’s article “The anti-social network: Life without Facebook”, states that some students who are trying to maintain a professional image for future employment are deleting their pages.

In the case background, there is a differing of opinions concerning the hiring and selection process of the various qualified applicants from the program director and the internship applicant reviewer. The program director feels that the institution has little control or regulation over a student’s personal life; however, Johnston feels as if the social media platform is an extension of a person’s professional behavior. Nevertheless, this case study raises the question of: To what extent should social media be used in the hiring and selection process of qualified

Facebook is a well know social networking site that has taken all over the world with over 500 million people using the site. Social networking sites such as Facebook share information about the user over the Internet, where it can be freely accessed by anyone. This is where issues of privacy to the individual arise. As

The above mentioned example is one of many questioning the credibility of the social networking sites. The fact that anyone can go to a person’s profile and save his/her picture to be used as desired is uncomfortable and disturbing. Another method for the disruption of ethical boundaries in regards to these networking channels is their utilization to conduct predatory marketing. The level of discomfort is high when a product/service is offered to a user on the basis of the needs assessment done by the exploitation of personal information. Some employers are also the culprits due to the fact that they make hiring decisions on the basis of prospective employee’s social network activities. These and many other scenarios lead problem solvers to come up with alternatives and implement productive decisions.

However, this practice has been noted to be beneficiary in understanding the character of an employee or student. Going through their profiles would reveal more on their relationships and interactions with other people. This would help organizations get the rightful applicants because an error in this could result in irreparable harm. Even so, as this practice becomes widespread, people would always clean their accounts before interviews to depict the needful and erase the undesired. This way, employers and schools would not gather useful information as the profile would have been customized to impress. Additionally, people could operate Facebook accounts to be used for interviews. Such accounts would contain what would be considered desirable for interviewers. They would have other accounts for normal socialization. Therefore, at the end of it, interviewers who access their Facebook accounts get wrong information on the interviewee.

Social networking sites are a dangerously sharp double-edged sword. Professional sites such as LinkedIn can showcase one’s talents and provide an advantage within a large applicant pool while personal sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, myspace, even YouTube, if used irresponsibly, can make public many aspects of an individual’s private life which can reflect negatively, when viewed by others. The article “Didn’t get that new job? You need a better Facebook score” (Garling) highlights one of the many ways prospective employers can quantify someone based on their social media presence. The article describes a process whereby hiring managers rely on a consulting firm of sorts. This firm provides a score for each applicant based on their social media presence.

It’s unfortunate that this company was so poorly represented by these employees. However, studies suggest this type of behavior can be predicted and thusly avoided via pre-screening of potential employees’ social media profiles. It is better for both

People are increasingly sharing their lives online through social networking sites with little concern for who may be viewing their information. This has become an issue in current times and is up for debate based on the ethical issues associated with Social Media. People don’t realize joining a social network is like joining a community. As any community in real life, your business has a place in the community but should not invade one’s privacy. Social networking is one of the most popular methods apart from forum marketing that is available to Internet users today. Places like MySpace and Facebook among others have gone from just social interaction spaces to a part time marketing program as