Is this allowed?

qwertyabcd

I saw a job ad (retail) and instead of sending my cv they want a link to my facebook, twitter and linkedin profiles. I don't have a linkedin, I barely use my twitter account and while I have nothing to hide on facebook, I have expressed a strong opinion a few times (news related) which while it would never affect my ability to do a job, an employer may think otherwise. I also have a problem with any potential employer knowing that I am gay as it has nothing to do with the job. So are they allowed to request this?

Panda_Turtle

qwertyabcd wrote: »

I saw a job ad (retail) and instead of sending my cv they want a link to my facebook, twitter and linkedin profiles. I don't have a linkedin, I barely use my twitter account and while I have nothing to hide on facebook, I have expressed a strong opinion a few times (news related) which while it would never affect my ability to do a job, an employer may think otherwise. I also have a problem with any potential employer knowing that I am gay as it has nothing to do with the job. So are they allowed to request this?

Its probably allowed, but if I were you, I would tell them to go to hell.

Or you could make all your posts only viewable to friends. On Facebook They would still see pages you liked, cover photos etc.

Although maybe with the nature of the role they need somebody who can use the social media avenue to the advantage of the company.

Kaizersoze81

If they're carrying on like that already, you have to ask yourself is it really the sort of place you'd lie to work.

qwertyabcd

thank you, as desperate as I am for a job I wont apply to somewhere that uses my facebook profile instead of my cv, I already had my profile can only set so that if someones not my friend they can only see the bare minimum

Remouad

qwertyabcd wrote: »

I saw a job ad (retail) and instead of sending my cv they want a link to my facebook, twitter and linkedin profiles. I don't have a linkedin, I barely use my twitter account and while I have nothing to hide on facebook, I have expressed a strong opinion a few times (news related) which while it would never affect my ability to do a job, an employer may think otherwise. I also have a problem with any potential employer knowing that I am gay as it has nothing to do with the job. So are they allowed to request this?

Allowed? only if you let it be.

Think about it this way - would you want to work in a place that monitors what you put on facebook?

Oh only just noticed the bit where you said you're gay. That is absolutely no concern of theirs.

The only three things they should be concerned with are
1) Experience,
2) Qualifications,
3) Criminal convictions.

MODS, Is naming and shaming allowed? would love to know what company it was.

zenno

That is your private information, they have absolutely no right to ask you for this. All you have to say is that you don't use any of those social media sites.

Greenmachine

Saw something similar a few months ago. One of the jobs wanted to apply via my facebook account. Needless to say I did not apply for the job.

wuffly

Linkedin is the only thing remotely acceptable on that list as its actually for professional networking. As for not wanting your CV I'd wonder what kind of company they are.

Panda_Turtle

qwertyabcd wrote: »

I saw a job ad (retail) and instead of sending my cv they want a link to my facebook, twitter and linkedin profiles.

PM sent about this Ad. Want to see this Job ad

Deise Vu

I am bemused by the responses so far. Linkedin (if you use it) contains all the information a CV would contain, Facebook and Twitter reveal your personality. I would have thought that deals with the doctored, professionally enhanced CV problem that HR departments have to deal with and helps with the problem of trying to figure out personality from the very false situation that an interview presents. Are you embarassed about your life / lifestyle? Wouldn't it be better to end up somewhere they know you will fit in with them?

Of course, inevitably, this will lead to anodyne Facebook pages. Listen to your parents folks: don't be putting things up there that will come back to haunt you! Neknomination anyone?

SpaceTime

I don't like LinkedIn as I have a stalker problem and you can't block people on it. So, I will not use it.

The stalker turned up at work before etc etc

I've had a couple of recruitment agents get really pushy about setting up a profile.

I use Twitter a lot and to be honest, I wouldn't give anyone I don't know access to my Facebook profile.
I use it for friends and family only.

It would be like asking to browse my email account or have a rummage through my mobile phone. It's all family photos and friends etc nobody's business other than mine.

humanji

Deise Vu wrote: »

I am bemused by the responses so far. Linkedin (if you use it) contains all the information a CV would contain, Facebook and Twitter reveal your personality. I would have thought that deals with the doctored, professionally enhanced CV problem that HR departments have to deal with and helps with the problem of trying to figure out personality from the very false situation that an interview presents. Are you embarassed about your life / lifestyle? Wouldn't it be better to end up somewhere they know you will fit in with them?

Of course, inevitably, this will lead to anodyne Facebook pages. Listen to your parents folks: don't be putting things up there that will come back to haunt you! Neknomination anyone?

Without the context of the situation, most of what is put on Facebook could be interpreted as meaning anything. Unless the prospective employer is happy with you standing over them explaining each and every entry and photo to them, you can't be sure of what they may make out of the most innocuous. things.

Deise Vu

humanji wrote: »

Without the context of the situation, most of what is put on Facebook could be interpreted as meaning anything. Unless the prospective employer is happy with you standing over them explaining each and every entry and photo to them, you can't be sure of what they may make out of the most innocuous. things.

I always thought a picture told a thousand words. If you are on a team it will be there, if 'you love travelling and meeting people' it will be reflected there. If you use it to bully or laugh at people it will be there etc etc. Unfortunately for a lot of people, the standard of your communications will also be evident

humanji

Deise Vu wrote: »

I always thought a picture told a thousand words. If you are on a team it will be there, if 'you love travelling and meeting people' it will be reflected there. If you use it to bully or laugh at people it will be there etc etc. Unfortunately for a lot of people, the standard of your communications will also be evident

Imagine you were in a friends short film where you played a crazed party animal. One of the still photos has you in your underwear at a party downing a bottle of vodka. You pop this up on Facebook, not explaining it because you've already told your friends in person what it is. Your prospective employer sees this, and believing it to be you at a real party think that they'd be better off not employing you.

Kensington

zenno wrote: »

That is your private information, they have absolutely no right to ask you for this. All you have to say is that you don't use any of those social media sites.

They have every right to ask you for your Facebook profile page - just as you have every right to refuse them, but that could rule you out of the job. If they asked for your Facebook login then it's into big-no-no territory.

Could be a simple test e.g. if you will be handling confidential customer information in a role, then how seriously do you take your own personal information? A completely open Facebook profile would suggest you don't really regard your own personal information at all so how likely are you to regard their customer's in that role?

Likewise - it could be the company covering themselves. If you have strongly opionated posts viewable to anyone and their granny, what might everyone and their granny think of the company if they were to associate you with it via your Facebook profile content?

Besides - they don't need a link to your profile.
Google will reveal all - and is widely used by HR departments!

wuffly

No one i work is on my facebook, ever. I have nothing to hide but my weekends, holidays and how I spend them are my business i use it purely as someone that lives abroad to keep in touch with people at home. i manage tags etc... little bit vainly but that's my choice. I wouldn't entertain a company that thinks they have the right to ask me to share my personal life to get a job, but i don't work in sales/marketing/comms, perhaps they want someone with tonnes of friends and will to share all that annoying crap....being active on social media might be a requirement? They should be capable of searching you on all those forums anyway.

Deise Vu

humanji wrote: »

Imagine you were in a friends short film where you played a crazed party animal. One of the still photos has you in your underwear at a party downing a bottle of vodka. You pop this up on Facebook, not explaining it because you've already told your friends in person what it is. Your prospective employer sees this, and believing it to be you at a real party think that they'd be better off not employing you.

I am not going to get into 'what if' tennis. I would imagine one or two photo's are not going to give a misleading impression. In my personal opinion, there is so much 'shared' on Facebook by most users that it would be almost impossible not to get a sense of a person's true personality. More so than from an interview anyway.

Anyway back to the point. Why do people put everything that ever happens them on Facebook and then wonder why an employer might want to look at it?
As other people have said, a prospective employer can ask whatever the hell they want. It is up to the prospective employee whether or not they supply it.

Just wait until the Banks start requesting it as part of mortgage restructuring!

wuffly

Actually legally there is a lot they cannot ask, which they could find out by getting access to facebook, so they could be sneaking around the law.....

Gatling

Reminds me of a case where social welfare used a woman's fb profile to remove her disability payments and have her charged with fraud ,

I personally wouldn't allow any prospective employer permission to go through any social media profile ,in saying I know a couple of friends in Hr roles who access peoples fb and Twitter after they have been for an interview ,
You're entitled to privacy doesn't matter if your applying for a job or already in a job .

Kensington

wuffly wrote: »

Actually legally there is a lot they cannot ask, which they could find out by getting access to facebook, so they could be sneaking around the law.....

Yeah but if you've made this publicly available on your Facebook page, it's pretty much fair game!
From the sounds of it, they've not asking for the Facebook login, just a link to the Facebook profile page.

What they can/can't see is entirely up to how much of your Facebook page you've made public.

bumper234

Why don't people just say "I don't have a Facebook account"?

wuffly

Kensington wrote: »

Yeah but if you've made this publicly available on your Facebook page, it's pretty much fair game!
From the sounds of it, they've not asking for the Facebook login, just a link to the Facebook profile page.

What they can/can't see is entirely up to how much of your Facebook page you've made public.

Publicly available is like saying you've told family/friends your gay, or muslim or want to start a family..... this is not information employers legally have a right to ask for and shouldn't be able to get from facebook if your fb is private and they cant access it by as basic search, which they dont need permission for.

Mrs OBumble

zenno wrote: »

That is your private information, they have absolutely no right to ask you for this. All you have to say is that you don't use any of those social media sites.

Ahh, that's not quite right.

Your password to those sites is private information.

But the name of your profile is most certainly not private. And neither is is the content that you publish there. If you don't believe this, then go and read their terms and conditions.


OP, an employer is allowed to request anything, and to make employment decisions based on anything that's not forbidden by the anti-discrimination laws. Asking for links to all your social media profiles is unusual for retail jobs, which are more likely to ask you to fill in their own application form or apply via their on-line system. But it's not illegal. Sometimes it may be relevant to the job (eg if it's gardening retail, are you a member of any groups about gardening).

LinkedIn, in particular, is relevant if you're job-hunting, and your really should have a profile unless you have some specific reason for wanting a low profile, eg stalkers, violet ex-partners, etc.

Also, I wouldn't be so sure that what you have on Facebook has no impact on your ability to do the job in retail. If you have a public profile, or post on public pages, then anything that can be seen by your (potential) employer can also be seen by the public. If I walk into a shop and the salesguy os someone who I'd seen do stupid things on FB, then I'd most likely walk out again rather than deal with an idiot.

partyguinness

I have heard of this increasingly. I heard of an employer in the UK actually insisting on the candidate logging in to their accounts during the interview.

People need to be a little more smart and think about what they put on social media etc. Companies also like to see if you have bitched about your previous employer and are you likely to do the same again.

When I went for interviews, I googled the company and individuals. You have to assume that HR will do the same to you.

I have a Facebook account which I never use (think I set it along with a few friends in 2007 to perv on some local hotties...:o), Linkedin- expected in my line of work but as someone said, it just confirms my CV anyway. Nothing out of the ordinary there, Twitter- don't use it. Quite frankly, I havent got the time to waste on such accounts.

In fact I am careful not to use it, and at my wedding I made a point of asking people not to post pics on Facebook. I was livid a few years ago when a pic of me was posted on Facebook on someone elses account. I would never post pics of someone else on Facebook (well I cldnt be arsed to post anything anyway)

Just deactivate the Facebook account, change settings and remove photo or dont apply for the job.

Gatling

Would anybody hand over there boards.ie handle for prospective employers to browse your posts

humanji

Deise Vu wrote: »

I am not going to get into 'what if' tennis. I would imagine one or two photo's are not going to give a misleading impression. In my personal opinion, there is so much 'shared' on Facebook by most users that it would be almost impossible not to get a sense of a person's true personality. More so than from an interview anyway.

But you're missing the very important point that what you put up thinking is innocuous can be easily misconstrued and cost you a job.

Deise Vu wrote: »

Just wait until the Banks start requesting it as part of mortgage restructuring!

In fairness, I think we should be the ones asking the banks.

baby and crumble

Surely you can just tell prospective employers that you don't have a Facebook? Although, be aware they can still google you and find it pretty easily unless you change your name.

For example, I was teaching for a while so changed my name by taking out my surname and putting in my middle name so m students couldn't find me and ad me. Not even half as easy to find now but then I'm happy to not be added easily by randomers. If you're looking for work you need to google yourself, because you can gaurentee they will. What do you see? Make sure your settings are the way you want (ie nothing visible to non friends!!!) and so on.

Panda_Turtle

bumper234 wrote: »

Why don't people just say "I don't have a Facebook account"?

Or say "No".

People should have a different email address on CV than what you use to login to facebook.

Gatling

Panda_Turtle wrote: »

Or say "No".

People should have a different email address on CV than what you use to login to facebook.

They will either Google you or do both twitter and fb searches for your name ,
They don't need your email address

Panda_Turtle

Gatling wrote: »

They will either Google you or do both twitter and fb searches for your name ,
They don't need your email address

Hmm I did some creative Googling and managed to find some of my posts on a public page.

All they can see is my cover photos, preview of profile pic, and my "liked pages".

danbyrne88

Deise Vu wrote: »

I always thought a picture told a thousand words. If you are on a team it will be there, if 'you love travelling and meeting people' it will be reflected there. If you use it to bully or laugh at people it will be there etc etc. Unfortunately for a lot of people, the standard of your communications will also be evident

Deise Vu I dont agree at all with what youre saying. Youre making it out as if people are reluctant to give their profile to a potential employer as they are afraid or ashamed of what they put on facebook? Im sure thats not the case, facebook is for friends and family as you said and it shouldnt be used as a device for a stranger to judge you.

Personal life and work life are two separate things. Looking at someones Facebook and making judgments based on that is ignorant if you ask me as funnily enough people act different in a work environment than they do in their personal life. if youre a public figure or the job is a high profile job in the publics eye then there may be grounds to do that but the right thing to do would be a round of interviews to assess the person not their social accounts.

Certainly for a retail job the employer should not be asking for this kind of information.

This is what LinkedIn was created for. To act as a "social media" site but in the context of professional networking. Facebook and Twitter on the other hand are personal/social/informal.

Deise Vu

danbyrne88 wrote: »

Deise Vu I dont agree at all with what youre saying. Youre making it out as if people are reluctant to give their profile to a potential employer as they are afraid or ashamed of what they put on facebook? Im sure thats not the case, facebook is for friends and family as you said and it shouldnt be used as a device for a stranger to judge you.

Personal life and work life are two separate things. Looking at someones Facebook and making judgments based on that is ignorant if you ask me as funnily enough people act different in a work environment than they do in their personal life. if youre a public figure or the job is a high profile job in the publics eye then there may be grounds to do that but the right thing to do would be a round of interviews to assess the person not their social accounts.

Certainly for a retail job the employer should not be asking for this kind of information.

This is what LinkedIn was created for. To act as a "social media" site but in the context of professional networking. Facebook and Twitter on the other hand are personal/social/informal.

I don't know how you picked this up from my post. My point (maybe it is clearer in earlier posts) is that we all massage our CVs and claim all sorts of wonderful things at interviews which usually cannot be verified without great difficulty. However your Facebook page will clearly demonstrate if you play team sports and travel a lot, meeting lots of wonderful people (the typical BS people will spout at an interview).

All I am saying is beware. It is a buyers market for employers. You might be too embarrassed to show your Facebook page but there will be plenty of other candidates who won't.

bumper234

Gatling wrote: »

They will either Google you or do both twitter and fb searches for your name ,
They don't need your email address

If you google my name (not that common either) it shows 47 results. 23 of those are for Facebook.

username123

Gatling wrote: »

They will either Google you or do both twitter and fb searches for your name ,
They don't need your email address

My Facebook name is not my real name. Its a pretend name like (for example) "Nerdy Astronomer". When people ask why I tell them its to protect my privacy. If I was asked by a prospective employer I would simply say I had no FB account. I dont have a Twitter account and I dont have a LinkedIn - I try to keep my internet footprint as anon as possible.

danbyrne88

Deise Vu wrote: »

I don't know how you picked this up from my post. My point (maybe it is clearer in earlier posts) is that we all massage our CVs and claim all sorts of wonderful things at interviews which usually cannot be verified without great difficulty. However your Facebook page will clearly demonstrate if you play team sports and travel a lot, meeting lots of wonderful people (the typical BS people will spout at an interview).

All I am saying is beware. It is a buyers market for employers. You might be too embarrassed to show your Facebook page but there will be plenty of other candidates who won't.

where are you getting the notion of "You might be too embarrassed to show your Facebook page" ?? its not about that! its the fact that its most likely irrelevant information in the context of a new job. I'm a professional person who extensively uses LinkedIn (as thats what its for), the employer should use that, not Facebook.

As for verifying traveling/sports teams etc I'm pretty sure thats not the main point of an interview. Any interview Ive ever gone to has focused on career experience and if they want to fill in time they may or may not get into hobbies (thats usually just filler anyway).

You seem to be talking down to people implying they must be embarrassed by their social media pages. but youre missing the point that as an employer they should find out what a person is like through the correct channels i.e. LinkedIn & interviews.

Mrs OBumble

bumper234 wrote: »

If you google my name (not that common either) it shows 47 results. 23 of those are for Facebook.

So really it's your call whether the potential employer judges you based on your own FB profile, or based on someone elses.

The claim tnat your personal and work life are separate is interesting.

They are separate, to some extent. And I totally don't encourage befreinding colleagues on Facebook.

But every action you do in the public arena can impact on your work persona.

And there are some jobs which have tasks (eg updating your shop's Facebook page) which may require you to have a Facebook profile.

MadsL

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

OP, an employer is allowed to request anything, and to make employment decisions based on anything that's not forbidden by the anti-discrimination laws.

OP - give it to them and then when they turn you down for the job or fail to give an interview even though you are qualified, sue. That will put manners on them and a few grand in your pocket.

They have requested information forbidden under anti-discrimination laws.

Marital Status
Age
Sexual Orientation
Race
etc..

All can be gleaned from social network profiles.

If you think this is just speculation, well, I know someone who got a large out of court settlement for precisely this situation.

MadsL

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

And there are some jobs which have tasks (eg updating your shop's Facebook page) which may require you to have a Facebook profile.

Or you could just use their profile.

My work asked me to like their facebook page. I flat refused.

bumper234

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

So really it's your call whether the potential employer judges you based on your own FB profile, or based on someone elses.

The claim tnat your personal and work life are separate is interesting.

They are separate, to some extent. And I totally don't encourage befreinding colleagues on Facebook.

But every action you do in the public arena can impact on your work persona.

And there are some jobs which have tasks (eg updating your shop's Facebook page) which may require you to have a Facebook profile.

I actually don't have FB so it would not affect me either way but what if an employer does not believe me when I say that? As for prospective employers asking people to LOG INTO their social media accounts to snoop around surly that has to be illegal.

tricky D

bumper234 wrote: »

As for prospective employers asking people to LOG INTO their social media accounts to snoop around surly that has to be illegal.

fyi/fwiw

Whatever about legality, there's FB's own T&Cs which do not allow employers to access accounts

From https://www.facebook.com/legal/terms

3 Safety

5 You will not solicit login information or access an account belonging to someone else.

4 Registration and Account Security

8 You will not share your password (or in the case of developers, your secret key), let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account.

The 2 above simply mean an employer can not ask you for account access.

5 Protecting Other People's Rights

7 If you collect information from users, you will: obtain their consent, make it clear you (and not Facebook) are the one collecting their information, and post a privacy policy explaining what information you collect and how you will use it.

This suggests that if an employer does look at your profile, they should provide a privacy and usage policy for that purpose.

all imo

Deise Vu

danbyrne88 wrote: »

where are you getting the notion of "You might be too embarrassed to show your Facebook page" ?? its not about that! its the fact that its most likely irrelevant information in the context of a new job. I'm a professional person who extensively uses LinkedIn (as thats what its for), the employer should use that, not Facebook.

As for verifying traveling/sports teams etc I'm pretty sure thats not the main point of an interview. Any interview Ive ever gone to has focused on career experience and if they want to fill in time they may or may not get into hobbies (thats usually just filler anyway).

You seem to be talking down to people implying they must be embarrassed by their social media pages. but youre missing the point that as an employer they should find out what a person is like through the correct channels i.e. LinkedIn & interviews.

Would it help if I had put 'One' instead of 'You'. I have no idea what is on your Facebook. I have to disagree regarding the point of an interview. They are interviewing you and all the other candidates because they want to see if you will fit into their organisation. Some of the questions will be to see if you have an exaggerated CV but the rest will be to ascertain if you are the 'get up and go / dogsbody / mouse / workaholic / psycho / teamplayer / loner / creative genius' they are hoping to get for the role.

Anyone can claim an outgoing, team oriented personality at an interview but their Facebook timeline may indicate origami and flower pressing are really your passions (sorry one's passion). So my message is beware what you post, that's all.

Wanderer2010

But what can you possibly get from Googling someone? Im not on Facebook but I just googled my own name, address, where I went to college etc and put in different variations of same and I only got ONE result which shows my graduation date, nothing more nothing less. If you are not on social media then I dont understand what on earth you can gain from Googling someone....

danbyrne88

Deise Vu wrote: »

Would it help if I had put 'One' instead of 'You'. I have no idea what is on your Facebook. I have to disagree regarding the point of an interview. They are interviewing you and all the other candidates because they want to see if you will fit into their organisation. Some of the questions will be to see if you have an exaggerated CV but the rest will be to ascertain if you are the 'get up and go / dogsbody / mouse / workaholic / psycho / teamplayer / loner / creative genius' they are hoping to get for the role.

Anyone can claim an outgoing, team oriented personality at an interview but their Facebook timeline may indicate origami and flower pressing are really your passions (sorry one's passion). So my message is beware what you post, that's all.

Why are you trying to be smart with the You / One comments? I was speaking in general terms..... you seem to be missing the point that an employer should not use personal social media sites as a tool to assess a persons ability for a job.

They have formal channels that they must adhere to as an employer. Also as Madsl said above by requesting your facebook or twitter accounts "They have requested information forbidden under anti-discrimination laws. Marital Status, Age, Sexual Orientation, Race etc.."

The fact is employers should not use Facebook/Twitter. Its irrelevant if you say its easier for them to determine a persons personality, it doesnt take away from the fact that they shouldnt use it.

noodler

Mrs OBumble wrote: »

Ahh, that's not quite right.

Your password to those sites is private information.

But the name of your profile is most certainly not private. And neither is is the content that you publish there. If you don't believe this, then go and read their terms and conditions.


OP, an employer is allowed to request anything, and to make employment decisions based on anything that's not forbidden by the anti-discrimination laws. Asking for links to all your social media profiles is unusual for retail jobs, which are more likely to ask you to fill in their own application form or apply via their on-line system. But it's not illegal. Sometimes it may be relevant to the job (eg if it's gardening retail, are you a member of any groups about gardening).

LinkedIn, in particular, is relevant if you're job-hunting, and your really should have a profile unless you have some specific reason for wanting a low profile, eg stalkers, violet ex-partners, etc.

Also, I wouldn't be so sure that what you have on Facebook has no impact on your ability to do the job in retail. If you have a public profile, or post on public pages, then anything that can be seen by your (potential) employer can also be seen by the public. If I walk into a shop and the salesguy os someone who I'd seen do stupid things on FB, then I'd most likely walk out again rather than deal with an idiot.

How do you address the major possibility that an employer will discriminate against you based on a baptism you were at because they think you have kids?

Or against a profile picture of you because they think you are ugly and perhaps not ideal for a certain position dealing with the public?

That they will interpret a few pints with a few friends as you being unreliable?

That your membership of a certain political party could lead to you having a stance which may go against that of the business?

God, the list goes on and on.

I know women who would cry bloody murder if they were asked outright if they had kids or were married in a job interview. Why anybody would be happy to let a potential employer access an almost limitless amount of 'data' on you which could be used to discriminate against you without you even knowing is beyond me.

Deise Vu

danbyrne88 wrote: »

Why are you trying to be smart with the You / One comments? I was speaking in general terms..... you seem to be missing the point that an employer should not use personal social media sites as a tool to assess a persons ability for a job.

They have formal channels that they must adhere to as an employer. Also as Madsl said above by requesting your facebook or twitter accounts "They have requested information forbidden under anti-discrimination laws. Marital Status, Age, Sexual Orientation, Race etc.."

The fact is employers should not use Facebook/Twitter. Its irrelevant if you say its easier for them to determine a persons personality, it doesnt take away from the fact that they shouldnt use it.

I wan't trying to be smart. You are the one talking this personally, I am just pointing out why an employer might want access to Facebook.

As far as I am aware it is not compulsory to put anything into your profile which gives your age, sex, religion or sexual-orientation. The fact that most users do so, or it could be gleaned from some images or content is irrelevant, the prospective employer will say they are just trying to get a snapshot of your personality. That is emphatically not against the law even if it does seem extraordinarily intrusive.

danbyrne88

Deise Vu wrote: »

I wan't trying to be smart. You are the one talking this personally, I am just pointing out why an employer might want access to Facebook.

As far as I am aware it is not compulsory to put anything into your profile which gives your age, sex, religion or sexual-orientation. The fact that most users do so, or it could be gleaned from some images or content is irrelevant, the prospective employer will say they are just trying to get a snapshot of your personality. That is emphatically not against the law even if it does seem extraordinarily intrusive.

Most people who use facebook will put up information, private information and pictures etc, that they want to share with friends and family only, not strangers.

An employer can view your facebook, and assuming people are smart enough to have it on private, all they will see is your profile pic and general info.

If the employer asks to delve deeper i.e. ask for a password thats morally wrong and against FB policy.

Theres even an article on recruit ireland advising against letting an employer view your account. http://www.recruitireland.com/careercentre/interviewadvice/Facing-your-Facebook-Account-a/4714

You're missing the point im making that an employer shouldnt ask for it and has no grounds to demand it so i'll just leave it at that as I can see this going in circles.

Mrs OBumble

noodler wrote: »

How do you address the major possibility that an employer will discriminate against you based on a baptism you were at because they think you have kids?

Or against a profile picture of you because they think you are ugly and perhaps not ideal for a certain position dealing with the public?

That they will interpret a few pints with a few friends as you being unreliable?

That your membership of a certain political party could lead to you having a stance which may go against that of the business?

It's a bit far-fetched to assume that because you attended your sister's kids baptism, you also have kids - employers aren't generally that dumb.

But as for the rest: it's fine to discriminate against you on the basis that you're ugly (so long as it's not due to disabillity or race) or belong to Fine Whatever or play GAA or believe in fairies (so long as the latter isn't part of a religion).


But really - how many people have their Facebook security set so that non-freinds can see all this detail?

JONJO THE MISER

And this is why i have never signed up to facebook twitter or the like, people can be so stupid putting up all there information and photos for the world to see, common sense does not seem to be so common anymore.

Irish_Elect_Eng

Can someone link the job add that sparked all this :-)

Any chance that social media is part of the role?

the_syco

It's late, so not reading the entire thread :pac:

qwertyabcd wrote: »

I have expressed a strong opinion a few times (news related) which while it would never affect my ability to do a job, an employer may think otherwise.

Set these topics to "friends only", and should you friend anyone from work when you start off, place them on the restricted list, so they're "friends", but only see what you post as "public".

Irish_Elect_Eng wrote: »

Any chance that social media is part of the role?

This is an american thing, to ensure your politics are not anti-corporation, to ensure you won't cause a fuss that can be avoided by simply hiring someone else. And because, in the current jobs market, they can.

Mr. Loverman

Kaizersoze81 wrote: »

If they're carrying on like that already, you have to ask yourself is it really the sort of place you'd like to work.

That's it exactly. Any time I've gone for a job interview and got a weird vibe (or they request weird stuff or whatever), I've always regretted taking those jobs.

Trust your instincts!