There have been a number of commentators that have warned people not to put up anything on their social media site they don't want a perspective employer to see. But now an attorney who specializes in advising companies on labor and employment issues relating to social networking said there might be some legal issues for employers looking to scout potential hires by checking their social media postings.
Laura B. Friedel, a partner at Levenfeld Pearlstein LLC, Chicago, said, "While there is no doubt that social networking sites can be a valuable source of background information on job candidates, employers should take steps to protect themselves from the liability they may face if they learn too much or the wrong information about a prospect.
"The fact is that the information that is available on-line is much greater than what an employer would ever be entitled to learn in a face-to-face or telephone interview situation."
She gave the example of a situation in which the company does a search regarding the two finalists for a position, only to learn that one of them is in the early weeks of pregnancy. "Clearly, this kind of information cannot be legally relied upon as part of the hiring process, but it is easy to understand how this knowledge could factor into the hiring manager's general impression of a candidate and it would be difficult for the company to argue that the decision not to hire her wasn't influenced by this knowledge," she said.
Ms. Friedel provided what she believes is a legally permissible way for companies to research potential hires online.
"Companies should consider having someone other than the person making the hiring decision do this type of research and only pass along permissible information to the decision maker. This way, the person making the decision doesn't know the candidate's race, creed, sexual preference, union or whistleblower activity, parental status or other protected characteristics, and the decision can't have been influenced by it.
"In addition, employers who rely on social media in hiring situations should focus on when they use these tools. Consistency is key and being selective in this regard can only lead to trouble," she said.
