NLRB Releases Report on Social Media Cases

On August 18, 2011, the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) Acting General Counsel issued a report that highlights numerous cases involving the use of social media by both employees and employers and the effect of such use on the workplace.

The report contains discussions of cases where employees’ use of social media was found to be “protected concerted activity” and others in which an employer’s social media policy was unlawfully overbroad. Given that social media has become an integral component in many workplaces, employers should be mindful of these decisions when implementing social media policies and taking adverse action against employees for their social media practices.