Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Facebook Ban - The Boss: To Add or Not to Add


This right here ladies and gentlemen, is a tricky one. No matter where you work, be it a casual bar or a high-powered corporate office, this is an issue. In an ideal world your boss won't have a Facebook profile, and if they do, won't attempt to add you.

This, however, is not an ideal world, and more likely than not you will get that friend request. So when you click on the friend request notification and see your boss' shining face peering at you from the screen what do you do? DILEMMA!

You feel obligated to accept the friend request because they are your boss, but do you really want to allow them access to your entire profile?

This has happened to me with a few bosses. I work in an industry where the relationship between boss and employee is usually quite casual. But no level of "casual" is casual enough to allow my male bosses access to my bikini shots from my Mexico vacation. This may be a different case if you have a boss that is the same gender as you, but either way it's not very appropriate. You do NOT want your boss seeing those photos your friend posted of you funnelling beers at that party last weekend or any other similar activities.

The other problem with having the boss on your Facebook is when you call in "sick" . We have all done it, either faked the call or are actually sick on a monday but felt fine enough to go out saturday night. When the photos, comments, or any other general evidence pops up on your Facebook that you were out when you should have been in bed you have an issue.

It makes me uneasy to have my boss comment on things on my profile. Just knowing that they can see what I do when I am not at work makes me nervous.

Another important point is that businesses are now "facebook searching" potential hires for jobs. So if you apply for a job, and your facebook profile is completely public with a photo of you doing a keg stand... good luck.

My advice: If the boss adds you, do NOT accept. If your profile is public, MAKE IT PRIVATE. If you are questioned as to why you did not accept said request, a simple explanation of how you "like to keep your work life and personal life separate" will suffice. If it does not, you're working for a 14 yearold.

1 comment:

  1. Uh! My bosses were completely 14 year olds about the whole facebook thing.
    Luckily I figured out their immaturity and added them (but not before I changed all my photo albums to private and didn't let friends tag me anymore).
    A long time since we've been "friends" on facebook, my supervisor explicitly complained to me about this other co-worker of mine who never "friended" her on facebook. And how she things she's a snob etc (totally inappropriate, I know) but that's how it goes down sometimes.

    It's just better to accept and stay private than to not accept and offend some 14 year old in a business suit and sits at your supervisor's desk.

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