2/13/2009

Do your employees "tweet"? If your response to this question is something along the lines of "huh?" it means you probably weren't born in the 1980s or 90s. But for Millennials (a/k/a Generation Y) and other technophiles, Twitter is quickly becoming an omnipresent form of communication available any time of day—including during the work day.

According to the website, "Twitter is a service for friends, family, and co-workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing?" In other words, whether through the web or using a cell phone or PDA, twitterers "tweet" their up-to-the-minute status, thoughts, and comments to their Twitter page or blog. It's a little like texting with everyone (even the general public) subscribing to your Twitter feed all at once.

So how can employee "tweets" cause trouble for employers?

• If an employee's communications run through an employer's servers, there's the potential that network security can be compromised



• Employers have no way of monitoring whether or not employees are disclosing confidential information or trade secrets in their Twitter communications



• Like all electronic communications, information that is twittered during the course of business may be binding on employers, who often have no way of maintaining records of the communications, which are equally subject to subpoenas as other records



• As short communications that are often made on the spur of the moment, twitters are vulnerable to misunderstandings, and can result in the exercise of poor judgment since employees may not think before they twitter



• Like other forms of electronic communication, tweets can be used to make harassing or discriminatory statements for which employers may be held liable



• When employees are twittering, they're not working

Remember that employees who use company property to Twitter must comply with employer computer use policies, and that consistent enforcement of that policy is critical, not only for effectiveness, but also to guard against discrimination and retaliation claims. Like with blogging, developing clear expectations for employees about how their work time should be spent improves productivity and helps guard defend wrongful termination and other claims when employees are terminated.

How to Effectively Manage Your Millennials

You mastered the Baby Boomers ages ago. You just recently got a handle on the Gen Xers. And now there's yet another group of workers you need to assimilate in your workplace: the Millennials.

The Millennials (or Gen Yers) are the first group of workers to have grown up on emailing, texting, Internet surfing, file-swapping, blogging, and making digital downloads. Born in the 1980s and beyond, they tend to have different work habits and goals than their more senior colleagues. They also may be more insistent when it comes to using personal technological devices, such as PDAs, iPods, smart phones, and other gadgets.

According to a study conducted by Symantec in March 2008, nearly 70 percent of Millennials who responded said they would use a computer application, technology, or device regardless of the corporate IT policy their employers had in place. That's an unsettling statistic—especially given the fact that with more and more Millennials entering the workforce, your sensitive data or trade secrets could be more vulnerable than you'd like to think.

And don't forget that intergenerational tensions can arise between Millennials and older employees—they've got a different take on appropriate workplace protocol, dress, seniority, and their role in the company.

Join us on Feb. 24 for an in-depth 90-minute audio conference all about effectively managing your Millennials. Our experts—both experienced employment law attorneys—will cover:

• How Millennials' values and beliefs may differ radically from those of their older coworkers—and why this matters



• The best way to set appropriate boundaries for personal and work time in a 24/7 world, as well as how to avoid a "cyberslacking" culture



• Differing methods and styles of communication among younger and older workers, and how to train workers in good communication etiquette regardless of their age



• The emerging legal and management issues that may arise from Millennials' use of technology in the workplace, including proprietary issues concerning your organization's intellectual property and Internet monitoring practices



• Where Millennials may be storing sensitive data about your company, and the data-security issues that could arise if you don't get a handle on their electronic storage practices



• How to minimizing your exposure to age discrimination claims arising from inter-generational conflicts

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