Does the use of social media present a career risk for employees? That is what a large number of American workers seem to believe. Social media platforms have long been a place for users to express themselves and showcase their hobbies and interests outside of work; however, these platforms also provide a way for employers to make personal assessments regarding the employee that may or may not be relevant to their performance at work.
The hefty career consequences of an active social media presence are something we’ve witnessed time and again, as employees have been fired for their behavior and opinions presented online. At the same time, many workers who build a comprehensive profile of their body of work on social media have found it much easier to get hired, considering they are able to showcase their appeal succinctly through these platforms. Employees’ perception of social media risks is likely shaped by how their employers have previously utilized the resources and what consequences have occurred as a result.
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Does the Use of Social Media Present a Career Risk for Employees?
A new survey from the American Staffing Association, conducted by The Harris Poll, found that 44% of working US adults believe an active social media presence is likely to harm an individual’s career rather than benefit it. Around 37% disagreed and believed that social media could be an advantage for an employee. A generational divide was witnessed in the numbers as well.
Around 48% of Baby Boomers believed that an active social media presence could hurt an individual’s career, but around 51% of Gen Z felt it could help theirs. Around 56% of Gen Z respondents felt that social media had helped their own careers, in comparison to 44% of Millennials and 20% of Baby Boomers who had benefited from having a social media presence.
An employee’s perception of these social media risks likely all boils down to how they choose to use their platforms and the content they present on them. Some content can help you get hired, while other posts can get in the way of finding employment.
Why Is Social Media Tied to an Employment Risk for Some Workers?
Every individual uses social media for a different reason. Some rely on it to keep up with their friends and family and provide their own life updates for others to see. Such usage is relatively harmless and does not pose a serious risk to their careers. There are a few who also use social media to build up their professional profiles, developing a following of fans who are interested in their opinions and insights in their area of expertise.
Others use social media to unwind and be their authentic selves online, shedding their “professional” personas to express opinions and thoughts they might keep under wraps at work. In the first two cases, social media rarely poses a career risk to the user as the uploaded content is relatively harmless and even complimentary to their careers in some cases. For those who use social media to be unfiltered, however, there is the risk of being negatively judged by a potential employer.
A survey by CareerBuilder found that around 70% of employers use social networking sites to research their candidates before hiring them. In some cases, this works in favor of employees, as 43% claim to have found content that caused them to hire the candidate, while on the other hand 57% found content that caused them not to hire a candidate.
The Lack of a Social Media Presence Could Also Result in Risks to Employment
One of the more startling findings of the CareerBuilder survey showed that 47% of respondents stated that if they were unable to find a candidate online at all, they were less likely to call them in for an interview. This implies that the lack of a social media profile could impact job security just as much as a controversial social media presence.
For 28% of them, this online assessment was conducted because they preferred to gather more information regarding a candidate before they called them in. Another 20% stated that they expected candidates to have an online presence, and the lack of it was just as concerning.
Employers don’t just monitor social media while hiring either—many continue to monitor employees’ online presence even after they bring an employee on board. Some do it to monitor whether employees remain professional online, while for others, it provides a way to assess what others are saying about the employee and whether there are reasons not to hire them.
Some Employees Are Turning to Social Media For Answers Themselves
A social media profile and its impact on job security is just one part of the puzzle. There are other ways in which relying on social media can put a strain on careers. Many employees turn to social media to feel a sense of community, as thousands of other workers understand and relate to their personal experiences on the job.
Now, many users are also relying on social media and AI as a way to inform themselves regarding the job sphere. While there are a lot of professional skills that can be learnt this way, social media and AI are both notorious sources of misinformation. A new Payscale survey found that 70% of employers have reported their employees using generative AI for data such as salary information. As a result, over a third of employers have found employee salary expectations to be higher than ever before, with 35% receiving conflicting information about their pay.
While this issue is occurring because employers are reluctant to invest in pay transparency practices that allow employees to know what to expect, it is also dangerous for employees to inflate their expectations through social media and AI. This can lead to unrealistic demands during job negotiations, causing them to lose out on a good opportunity.
There Are Inevitable Career Consequences of an Active Social Media Presence
Yes, the use of social media does represent a career risk for employees, particularly when these platforms are used to unwind and joke around in a more relaxed way than would be acceptable at work. While it may feel unfair for a company to evaluate who their employees are outside of their working hours, it is a practice that is unlikely to fade away. Employers enjoy having control over the narrative and many expect employees to be perfect representatives of the company culture at all times, even after work hours.
All public social media activity is open for evaluation, and there can be dire career consequences of an active social media presence if it does not line up with employer standards and expectations. The recent public outcry regarding the CEO of Astronomer has shown us that employers are not beyond reproach either, so it is important to ensure that information that makes it onto social media is largely positive.
Employees who do not want to allow their social media presence to put their jobs at risk can resort to using private accounts where they can express themselves more freely, but the risk does not go away entirely. There are always ways for employers with their wealth of resources to find the information they want.
If you choose to use social media freely, be aware of the career risks and the consequences that you may be presented with. There are cases where employees have won legal battles over wrongful termination related to social media content, but there are many other situations where employees have permanently lost their jobs over a single social media post. Think rationally and upload carefully every time you go online.
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