“Thirty five percent of employers reported not hiring an applicant due to detrimental information found on a SNS.”
Risky Business
It is fair to say that most job seekers likely use a SNS, as Facebook alone reports having 500 million current users. And hopefully most of them think twice before posting a picture from the crazy party last weekend. But the increased likelihood of a potential employer viewing a SNS of a job applicant, brings up risks for both employer and applicant. Some of these issues include perceptions of invasion of privacy by applicants, lack of clearly identifiable theoretical constructs used in the screening process, and the absence of data to support that the information used in screening is job relevant. In addition, many suggest that context is an important factor and one that may not be able to employers. For example, an employer may see a photograph of a job applicant sleeping on a bathroom floor and assume the applicant parties too much and was passed out. However, the context in which the photo was taken may actually be very different circumstances. Perhaps the photo was taken as a joke or as a result of a medical condition. Furthermore, this article presented the argument that it may not be fair to place judgement on a candidate for having access to their SNSs, while the information provided on another candidate’s SNS may be unavailable. “The level of publicly available data obtainable by employers is highly unstandardized across applicants, as some applicants will choose not to use SNSs at all while those choosing to use SNSs customize the degree to which information they share is made public to those outside of their network” (Brown, 2011). All of these risks introduce a possibility of discrimination and other legal issues or challenges. Implications
As Brown suggests, the instances of employers checking out your online identity isn’t going to stop anytime soon. Either is the use of social networking sites by job seekers. So, where does that leave us? The use of SNS in the hiring process could help some applicants or be detrimental to others and provide false judgements. As college students, many of us are currently or will soon be job searching. It is important to keep in mind who may be viewing your posts, pictures, videos or tweets and communicate appropriately. At the same time, “research should begin examining how employers and applicants might harness SNSs to their advantage, as well as addressing legal and ethical considerations surrounding this employment practice” (Brown, 2011). Further research into the use of social networking sites in the hiring process might also address a) personal aspects beyond personality that may be inferred from an evaluation of an individual’s SNS profile as well as b) assist employers in assessing the job relatedness of SNS information and ensure consistency with business necessity. While this issue is on the rise and more research clearly needs to be done, it is important for all members of the work force- job seekers and job providers- to be aware of all the issues associated with using SNS in hiring decisions. In the meantime, keep your wall PG!Works Cited:
Brown, V. (2011). The Writing on the (Facebook) Wall: The Use of Social Networking Sites in Hiring Decisions. Journal of Business and Psychology. Retrieved from: http://www.springerlink.com.dml.regis.edu/content/n42p63512mj68vxw/fulltext.html
Article By: Jodi Nasser
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