Is it time for HR leaders to refresh their policies regarding what does and does not warrant termination?
In today’s digital world, your online presence follows you everywhere. Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn – whatever you post, whatever you say, is out there for everyone to see. Forever. You only have to look at the countless people that have lost their jobs and their livelihoods over one misjudged post. Just this month, Estee Lauder terminated veteran executive John Demsey over a social media post that allegedly contained a racial slur – and he’s not the only case by far.
With that in mind, it’s time for HR leaders to take a moment to refresh their memories, and their policies, regarding what does and what does not warrant termination. Namely, when can you fire an employee, not matter how senior, for an online gaffe?
“That's a tricky question,” Linda Mota, VP HR at Topanga, told HRD. “And it's really going to depend on what the situation is. In this time of ‘cancel culture’, people think that they have a lot more rights as an employer than they actually do. But it's not always so clear cut. If the person is partying and posting a lot of pictures, but not doing anything illegal, it's going to be very difficult to terminate them on that basis.
“The employer might feel that for their brand that it's inappropriate, and they want to let them go. But that's going to be a really, really hard thing to do. Now, if the employee is engaging in activity that really goes...
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