Grab your laptops guys it’s break time. It used to be tea breaks or fag breaks but how times have changed.
Instead of trying in vain to stop staff from social networking at work, some bosses may decide to offer ten minute Facebook breaks to deal with the problem.
The change of heart comes in the light of recent research which suggests that Britain’s economy is suffering because of workers spending too much time on social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace Flickr, Twitter and Bebo.
You’ve got to laugh haven’t you? Social networking is addictive and it’s also extremely popular so perhaps by giving in, at least partly, by allowing workers their fix, it will satisfy the addiction and allow workers to get on with their jobs.
The alternative of course is that in order to enforce any ban on social networking at work, employers may have to sack staff. However, if everyone is doing it then bosses are quickly going to lose their workforce. It’s a catch 22.
“They feel some staff are failing to do the job they’re paid for because they’re spending too much time on such websites,” said Giles Ridgeway a consultant at Employment Law Advisory Service (ELAS) who also said Facebook is a “curse”.
“Some have said it appears to be a habit similar to smokers needing their fix of nicotine.”
Of course updating our status or modifying our profiles isn’t a “legal entitlement” at work as Ridgeway is quick to point out so it’s really up to individual bosses to decide how they want to deal with it.
Apparently since the beginning of the year there have been a growing number of firms seeking advice on what to do about what has been described as the “new media menace”.
“In days past, staff would have gathered around the office tea trolley for a quick chat. Now, they can talk to friends on the other side of the globe from their desks,” says Ridgeway.
“But to remain able to do so means committing to doing the job they’re employed for. If they don’t and bosses take exception to what they believe to be an abuse, they could find themselves out of work and companies would be well within their rights to take such action.”
Don’t we live in interesting times?
