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A few things to keep in mind on social media and job hunting

On Behalf of | Aug 5, 2018 | Employment Law |

If you are currently looking for your next gig, second job or a career change in Milwaukee, you might want to be a little careful about what you post on social media. Though your account may be set to private or you don’t share things all too often, employers are paying attention and using what they find to influence their hiring decisions.

Employers use many resources to vet their workers. Now that the use of social media is at an all-time high, some of them are going to the internet to research potential and current employees. Here are some things to keep in mind during your job hunt about social media use.

Not all public info is fair game

Federal law protects workers and job seekers against certain kinds of discrimination. If a potential employer uses protected information (gender, race, religion, disability, pregnancy and age) in their employment and hiring practices and decisions, they are discriminating, which is unlawful. For example, a potential employer could glance at your Facebook page to learn more about you, in particular federally protected information. If they did not get that information from any other source but Facebook, you might have an employment discrimination claim.

Keep in mind that many background check firms use information derived from public and private sources like credit reports to provide for employers to access during their employment screening process. It is very common for background checks to come back with inaccurate and missing information that could have been derived from Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms in addition to their main resources.

You should carefully review job application and employment forms before you sign them. Also, try to avoid posting about your employer, employees and other work-related issues online. Employers must adhere to the Fair Credit Reporting Act when making hiring decisions and must inform you when they make decisions based on information they obtain during their screening process.

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