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NLRB: Workers Rights Extend to Facebook
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 The National Labor Relations Board has charged American Medical Response of Connecticut of illegally firing an employee who bad-mouthed a supervisor on her personal Facebook page.
According to an NLRB press release, the employee - a member of Teamsters Local 443 - had been directed by her supervisor to respond to a customer complaint, and was denied representation from her union. She later posted a negative remark about her boss to her Facebook page using her personal computer. Coworkers posted supportive responses to her entry. The company suspended, then fired the employee, contending her post violated the company's internet policy.
The NLRB investigation found that the employee's Facebook posting is concerted activity under the National Labor Relations Act (Sec. 7) which recognizes employees' right to self-organization and to "engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid and protection."
A hearing on the case is slated for January 25, 2011. Labor officials and lawyers say the case may be ground-breaking regarding employee use of social media to criticize employers.
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