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The Facebook Profile: A Right or a Violation? Essay example

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Social networking sites such as Twitter or Facebook have created a new ethical dilemma for many businesses. Corporations, small businesses, and even universities are struggling create policies to manage their employees social networking behaviors. Social networking access, particularly for recruiters, can provide personal information about potential employees, which would otherwise not be available. A business must follow statutes and guidelines when disclosing information to the public. Individuals on social networking sites have no such constraints. Employees can and do make comments about their employers online. Employers can and do watch what employees post online. Any individual can send or post potentially damaging information …show more content…

Regardless of whether online profile information is on a resume, a recruiter can and probably will access a candidate’s online information. According to a recent Microsoft survey, seventy-five percent of US recruiters and HR professionals said their companies have formal policies that require hiring personnel to research applicants online (Hyatt, 2011). A teleologist would conclude that the recruiter is justified in using a social network profile in decision-making because the profile allows him to make a more informed decision about a potential job candidate. The profile gives insight into personal behaviors of a potential employee, which may not have been apparent during the interview (Ballenstadt, 2010). The end would be getting a model employee, which would justify the use of the social network profile, or the means of obtaining personal information about the potential employee that he did not disclose during the interview (Ferrell, 2011). A teleologist would not have an issue using a candidate’s personal profile information during the hiring process. If a different recruiter were looking at the same potential employee and held a deontological philosophy, he would disagree with his fellow recruiter. The potential employee would have “certain absolute rights”; including freedom of privacy and freedom of speech. A deontologist would feel that the company must uphold its moral standard and take the consequences of hiring without knowing additional personal

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