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Employee Conduct in the Age of Social Media

Employee Conduct in the Age of Social Media. Presented by: Chip E. Williams, Esq. Chip E. Williams, Esq. Chip E. Williams was born in Beckley, West Virginia on June 23, 1974. He was admitted to the West Virginia Bar in 1999.

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Employee Conduct in the Age of Social Media

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  1. Employee Conduct in the Age of Social Media Presented by: Chip E. Williams, Esq.

  2. Chip E. Williams, Esq. Chip E. Williams was born in Beckley, West Virginia on June 23, 1974. He was admitted to the West Virginia Bar in 1999. Mr. Williams is admitted to practice before the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, the United States District Court for the Southern and Northern Districts of West Virginia, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court of the United States. Mr. Williams attended West Virginia University earning his B.S. in Accounting in 1996 and his J.D. in 1999. Mr. Williams became associated with Pullin, Fowler & Flanagan in 1999. His primary focus is in education law, civil rights litigation, and general governmental liability. Mr. Williams has taught multiple seminars dealing with education law, police liability, and toxic torts. 

  3. BRIM W.Va. Code § 29-12-5a(a) requires that “[t]he state Board of Risk and Insurance Management shall provide appropriate professional or other liability insurance for all county boards of education, teachers, supervisory and administrative staff members, service personnel, county superintendents of schools and school board members and for all employees….”

  4. BRIM School faculty and staff are provided an aggregate of $6,000,000.00 of insurance coverage. W.Va. Code § 29-12-5a(c) states: “insurance coverage provided by the Board of Risk and Insurance Management pursuant to subsection (a) of this section shall be in an amount to be determined by the state Board of Risk and Insurance Management, but in no event less than one million dollars for each occurrence. In addition, each county board of education shall purchase, through the Board of Risk and Insurance Management, excess coverage of at least five million dollars for each occurrence. The cost of this excess coverage will be paid by the respective county boards of education….”

  5. BRIM When you receive notice of any potential litigation you should immediately notify BRIM; or When a significant event occurs that may trigger a lawsuit you should notify the central office to place BRIM on notice. Correspondence may be sent to: Robert A. Fisher 90 MacCorkle Avenue S.W., Suite 203   South Charleston, WV   25303 (304) 766-2646

  6. WHY? Why should we care what our employees are posting on social media?

  7. Nutter Fort, WV HEADLINES: “Boy with autism brought to tears as teacher snatches mic at Thanksgiving play” “West Virginia teacher swipes mic from boy with autism during school's Thanksgiving play” DOES THE MEDIA CARE IF THEY HAVE THE WHOLE STORY…?

  8. Washington, D.C. INITIAL HEADLINES “Students in 'MAGA' hats taunt indigenous elder, demonstrators in Washington” “White students in MAGA gear taunt Native American elders” RECENT HEADLINES “Teen in confrontation with Native American: I didn’t provoke” “Rush to judgment? New details emerge on Native American elder's standoff with MAGA-hat-wearing teens” The media today is quick to report on a story and quick to pass judgment, often times without knowing the whole story….

  9. Social Media Trolls

  10. Wolfpack

  11. Social Media Judge and Jury

  12. State Board Policy State Board Policy 5902 –Code of Conduct Employee • 4.2. All West Virginia school employees shall: • 4.2.1. exhibit professional behavior… • 4.2.2. contribute, cooperate, and participate in creating an environment in which all employees/students are accepted • 4.2.3. maintain a safe and healthy environment, free from harassment, intimidation, bullying, substance abuse, and/or violence, and free from bias and discrimination

  13. State Board Policy State Board Policy 5902 – Employee Code of Conduct • 4.2 (continued). All West Virginia school employees shall: • 4.2.5. immediately intervene in any code of conduct violation, that has a negative impact on students, in a manner that preserves confidentiality and the dignity of each person • 4.2.6.demonstrate responsible citizenship by maintaining a high standard of conduct, self-control, and moral/ethical behavior • 4.2.7. comply with all Federal and West Virginia laws, policies, regulations and procedures

  14. Model County Board Employee Code of Conduct Policy County Board Policy G-24 – Code of Conduct Employee • 3.1. All County school employees shall: • 3.1.1. exhibit professional behavior… • 3.1.2. contribute, cooperate, and participate in creating an environment in which all employees/students are accepted • 3.1.3. maintain a safe, healthy, and drug-free environment free from harassment, intimidation, bullying, substance abuse, violence, and free from bias and discrimination

  15. Model County Board Employee Code of Conduct Policy County Board Policy G-24 – Code of Conduct Employee • 3.1 (continued). All County school employees shall: • 3.1.6. report to the appropriate personnel ALL violations observed by school employees or by students and reported to a school employee • 3.1.7. demonstrate responsible citizenship by maintaining a high standard of conduct, self-control, and moral/ethical behavior • 3.1.12. employees are prohibited from use of social media and social photo/video sharing sites during the workday

  16. Model County Board Employee Code of Conduct Policy County Board Policy G-24 – Code of Conduct Employee • 3.1 (continued). All County school employees shall: • 3.1.13. communication with students via cell phone, text messages, or via social media and/or photo/video sharing sites shall be limited to communication directly related to academic, extra-curricular, or co-curricular matters. Otherwise, communication via these devices or platforms shall be prohibited • 3.1.16. comply with all Federal and West Virginia laws, policies, regulations and procedures

  17. Model County Board Social Networking Guidelines County Board Policy 7540 – Social Networking Guidelines • All employees have a professional image to uphold and how we conduct ourselves online impacts this image. Online identities are very public and can cause serious repercussions if behavior is careless • For the protection of your reputation the district recommends the following practices: • Do not accept students as friends on social networking sites. Decline any student-initiated friend requests

  18. Model County Board Social Networking Guidelines • Do not initiate friendships with students • Post only what you want the world to see. Imagine students, their parents, and other administrators visiting your site. Once you post something it may be available even after it is removed from the site • Do not discuss students, their parents or coworkers • Do not use commentary deemed to be defamatory, obscene, proprietary, or libelous • Weigh whether a particular posting puts your effectiveness as an employee at risk • If you or a member of your staff learns of information on the social networking site that falls under the mandatory reporting guidelines, it must be reported as required by law

  19. Social media as the jury of your employees’ conduct.

  20. WV Makes National and International News “It will be so refreshing to have a classy, beautiful, dignified First Lady back in the White House, “I'm tired of seeing a Ape in heels” wrote Pamela Ramsey Taylor, the axed director of the government-funded Clay Development Corporation. One person not outraged, however, was Beverly Whaling, the mayor of Clay. “Just made my day Pam,” she commented under the original post. Mayor Whaling has also resigned since the story broke. The incident has been reported on multiple national and international media outlets, including NBC, CBS, MSNBC, Fox, the Washington Post, TheAustralian.com, and the BBC.

  21. Ohio Teacher Placed on Administrative Leave over Snapchat Post • In 2017, A middle school teacher in Bedford, Ohio was on paid administrative leave after complaining on social media about students attending prom • Complaints were made by the teacher about students attending prom and the money being spent on the same, but lacking funds to pay for school supplies • The teacher was also critical of a lack of support by the parents of her students and an overall lack of passing grades in her class

  22. Mississippi Teacher Fired for Racist Facebook Post A second-grade teacher in Mississippi was fired after suggesting that black people “move back to Africa” on her Facebook page, which she later tried to claim had been hacked. The teacher claimed that her account was hacked, but was ultimately discharged for the posts

  23. Maryland Teacher Fired Over Light-hearted Tweet In January 2017, a social media manager for a Maryland school district was fired over a light-hearted tweet she sent to a student about his spelling. A student had sent a Tweet to the school district requesting that school be cancelled the following day. In the Tweet, the student misspelled “tomorrow” as “tammarow” The social media manager then engaged in some light-hearted banter with the student, in part, to correct the student’s spelling, but was ultimately fired for the conduct

  24. Substitute Teacher’s Social Media Post Results in Termination • A substitute teacher posted on Facebook regarding parents keeping students home in light of recent threats in the school district • The substitute teacher also posted a meme of a teacher holding a gun to a student’s head which read "You're starting to make me fear for my life...and I have a legal right to kill you in this classroom. “ • The posts, despite being on the teacher’s personal page, resulted in her termination

  25. Social Media Management

  26. SOCIAL MEDIA • 72% of all internet users are now active on at least one social media platform • Most Common Social Media Sites: • Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • Snapchat • Less Common Examples of Social Media • Blogs • Vlogs • Tumblr • Reddit • Four Key Points to Remember about Social Media • It’s searchable – anyone, anytime, anywhere can find it • It’s forever – anyone (even the school principal) can find it today, tomorrow, or 30 years from now • It’s copyable – once found it they can be copied, shared and changed • It has a global invisible audience – even if your page is private, you can’t tell which friend shares your information. You have no control over what your friends do with it

  27. Facebook had over 1.18 billion monthly active users as of August 2015. 71% of US teens ages 13-17 use Facebook Despite requiring a user to be 13 to use the site, it is believed that a large percentage of children ages 8 to 13 lie about their age and have active Facebook accounts 23% of Facebook users login at least 5 times per day The average US teen has 145 friends on Facebook, the average user over the age of 18 has 155 friends on Facebook

  28. If you choose to share content publicly on social media, make sure it’s working to your advantage. Take down or secure anything that could potentially be viewed by anyone as unprofessional/unethical/inappropriate and share content that highlights your accomplishments and qualifications in a positive way.” • Ways to limit your exposure on Facebook: • If you question whether or not a post if unprofessional/unethical/inappropriate, don’t post it on Facebook • Do not accept friend requests from students, their parents or anyone under the age of 18 • Actively monitor who posts on your Facebook page and/or associates their account to yours and, in turn, delete any unprofessional/unethical/inappropriate immediately • Change your Privacy Setting so that only the persons who you choose can access or view your content • Public: anyone including people off of Facebook can see it. • Friends of Friends: All of your friends and any friends that they have. • Friends (+ friends of anyone tagged): If anyone else is tagged in a post, then the audience expands to also include the tagged person and their friends. • Only Me: Visible only to you. • Custom: When you choose Custom, you can selectively share something with specific people, or hide it from specific people.

  29. Twitter has more than 500 million users, out of which more than 302 million are active users. Each account has on average about 200 people who will immediately see their tweets 34 % of all Twitter users log in more than once per day 33% of US teens ages 13-17 use Twitter Again despite age restrictions, it is believed that 12-13% of all Twitter users are under the age of 13 Every second, on average, around 6,000 tweets are tweeted on Twitter, which equates to about 500 million tweets per day

  30. Again, if the “tweet” you are writing could be seen by any user as unprofessional/unethical/inappropriate, don’t send the “tweet” • Approve only friendship requests of people you know and trust – Not students, parents, or family members of the same • Tweets and accounts are protected via your user settings • Two types of Tweets: • Public - (the default setting) are visible to anyone, whether or not they have a Twitter account. • Private - may only be visible to your approved Twitter followers. • If you discover that a user is being inappropriate or should not have access to your account, they can be blocked. Blocked users cannot : follow you; send Direct Messages to you; view your Tweets, following or followers lists, photos, videos, lists or favorites when logged in; add your Twitter account to their lists; or, tag you in a photo.

  31. There are over 300 million active users on Instagram, 77.6 million is the United States alone 40 million photos are uploaded every day 90% of active Instagram users are under the age of 35 52% of US teens use Instagram to share photos and video 23% of US teens list Instragram as their favorite social media site US teens have an average of 150 Instagram followers. Approximately 10% of US teens using Instagram are subjected to bullying using the social media site

  32. Privacy settings in Instragram allow you to make your account private However, private posts you share to other social networks may be visible to the public depending on your privacy settings for those networks. For example, a post you share to Twitter that was set to private on Instagram may be visible to the people who can see your Twitter posts. Once you make your posts private, people will have to send you a follow request if they want to see your posts, your followers list or your following list. If someone was already following before you set your posts to private and you don't want them to see your posts, you can block them. People can send a photo or video directly to you even if they’re not following you.

  33. Snapchat There are over 60 million current users of this app Over 400 million “snaps” are sent each day 70% of Snapchat users are female 41% of US teens use Snapchat to share images and videos.

  34. Snapchat • Biggest concern with the use of the is app is screenshots of a mobile phone • Although the snap will only be accessible for a short period of time, mobile device users can capture a screenshot of their device and save the snap • Snapchatleaks.net • Website developed which allows persons to search a Snapchat user’s username and will then show if any person has saved and uploaded a screenshot of a snap

  35. What types of posts and/or page content could be potentially problematic?

  36. If a picture says a thousand words, what are the following photos saying about the people in them…

  37. Actual Teacher Facebook Photos Teacher was investigated. Teacher was investigated. Teacher was investigated.

  38. Teachers in the News Date: February 8, 2009 Source: WKOW.com A Wisconsin Middle School Teacher was suspended after school officials were informed that teacher’s Facebook profile picture included the teacher aiming a gun at the camera.

  39. Teachers in the News Date: June 5, 2017 Source: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news Teacher suspended over ‘sultry’ Facebook selfies resigns after two month battle with bosses, despite pupils calling for her to be reinstated. Lydia Ferguson, mother of three, was formally reprimanded and escorted from school after uploading pictures, including this picture. The pictures featured pictures in low cut tops and rompers along side many family pictures. Staff called the pictures “provocative” and “sultry.” Her Facebook profile was an “open” one meaning that pupils and parents were free to view it.

  40. Teachers in the News Date: November 11, 2009 Source: WSBTV.com A Georgia Teacher was forced to resign after pictures of her vacation were displayed on Facebook. Teacher visited a Guinness Brewery and various attractions in Italy and Ireland. At each location, she drank alcoholic beverages. Pictures of the teacher with alcohol were displayed on Facebook. Superintendent gave teacher the option of resigning or being suspended. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/did-the-internet-kill-privacy/

  41. Teachers in the News Date: October 7, 2012 Source: https://www.nypost.com Tiffany Webb, a highly regarded guidance counselor at MurryBergtraum HS for Business Careers downtown NYC, was fired after 12 years with the Department of Education because photos of her in lingerie and bikinis from her early career as a model are still floating around the Internet. Webb, now 43, said she posed in seductive undies between age 18 to 20, but stopped modeling several years before she became a city teacher in 1999. Webb disclosed her former career when first hired. Yet she was investigated by the DOE three times — and twice spent a year in the “rubber room” — while officials probed the photos.

  42. Teachers in the News • A Denver 10th grade math teacher reportedly bragged on Twitter about how “hot her students are” and that she smokes weed in her free time. • She was ultimately terminated. • Here are a few of her posts…

  43. Social Media Posts Regarding Students or School Business • A Michigan teacher was fired for updating her Facebook status to read as follows: “Morgan wants to kill her ninth grade flute player who stole the school’s $900 dollar piccolo and is denying it.” • Teacher narrowly escaped a lawsuit for defamation. Date: January 13, 2009 Source: WoodTV.com

  44. Teachers in the News • A North Carolina teacher was suspended for updating her Facebook status to read as follows: “I am teaching in the most ghetto school in Charlotte.” • Somehow, the comment became public even though the teacher’s profile was set to “private”. • School Board performed investigation and suspended the teacher. Date: November 11, 2008 Source: TheJournal.com

  45. Teachers in the News A Middle School Teacher was suspended for comments that someone else left on her Facebook page. The teacher had just finished a classroom lesson on evolution when a student left a Bible and note on her desk. The note read “Merry Christmas” with Christ underlined. The teacher had recently married, and her new last name was “Hussein.” The teacher commented on her Facebook page that the student’s actions were a hate crime. The teacher subsequently posted on Facebook “I have a meeting with the Bible boy…Heaven help him I am still mad at that boy.” Some of the teacher’s friends commented stating that the parents of the students were “bigoted, stupid, and uncaring.” The teacher was suspended with pay. Date: February 15, 2010 Sources: wral.com; newsobserver.com

  46. Content other people share or tag you in…. You probably know not to post things online that could bite you later, but many of us do it all the time anyway—often without even realizing it. Whether it's a friend tagging you in a photo, even innocuous posts or photos can damage your relationships, get you in trouble at work, or even land you in legal hot water. Here's what we mean...

  47. Teachers in the News A western Pennsylvania high school teacher was suspended for 30 days without pay after she appeared in a picture someone else posted on Facebook that included a male stripper at a bridal shower. Teacher was not “posing” for the picture, she was not doing anything inappropriate, she was just in the picture. Date: January 22, 2010 Source: LehighValleyLive.com, PennLive.com

  48. Facebook “Employee” Searches Anyone can search Facebook for employees of “XYZ Board of Education” In Florida, the Sun-Sentinel Newspaper performed a search of “Palm Beach County School District” The search identified more than 200 employees The results were startling…

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