{"id":1226,"date":"2016-03-09T10:48:04","date_gmt":"2016-03-09T15:48:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/events.lindabury.com\/?p=1226"},"modified":"2019-12-24T13:12:46","modified_gmt":"2019-12-24T18:12:46","slug":"second-circuit-backs-nlrb-facebook-like-may-protected-concerted-activity-section-7-nlra","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lindabury.com\/firm\/insights\/second-circuit-backs-nlrb-facebook-like-may-protected-concerted-activity-section-7-nlra.html","title":{"rendered":"Second Circuit Backs NLRB: Facebook \u201cLike\u201d May Be Protected Concerted Activity Under Section 7 of the NLRA"},"content":{"rendered":"

Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act<\/a> guarantees that \u201cemployees shall have the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations\u2026.and to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of\u2026..mutual aid or protection\u2026.\u201d. \u00a0The National Labor Relations Board (the \u201cNLRB\u201d or \u201cBoard\u201d) has increasingly expanded the protections accorded to employee electronic communications under Section 7, even when electronic communication on social media includes disparaging and obscene comments about the employer. \u00a0 When social media posts touch upon the subject of employee wages, discipline or other terms and conditions of employment, these exchanges may constitute \u201cconcerted activity\u201d protected by the NLRA.<\/p>\n

Recently, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the NLRB\u2019s decision in Triple Play Sports Bar and Grille (Triple Play)<\/em><\/span> (2014), that the termination of two employees supporting a former employee\u2019s obscenity-laced Facebook post disparaging Triple Play\u2019s management was protected speech. \u00a0While many employers believe that public disparagement and obscenities are a legitimate basis for termination, this decision illustrates the risks facing employers who take action against employees who increasingly resort to social media to complain about work-related matters.<\/p>\n

Facts:<\/strong><\/span> LaFrance, a former employee of Triple Play, posted an update on her Facebook page criticizing Triple Play\u2019s failure to properly complete tax withholding paperwork, causing her to owe the state money. The post stated \u201cmaybe someone should do the owners of Triple Play a favor and buy it from them. They can\u2019t even do the tax paperwork correctly!!! Now I OWE money\u2026Wtf???\u201d \u00a0Spinella, a cook at Triple Play, clicked the \u201cLike\u201d button accompanying LaFrance\u2019s post. Sanzone, a waitress at Triple Play, posted \u201cI owe too. Such an asshole.\u201d \u00a0Several customers of Triple Play viewed the Facebook activity and Triple Play was eventually notified of the Facebook activity and in turn terminated the employees.<\/p>\n

Continue Reading \u203a<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Posting and supporting obscene or disparaging social media posts made by employees may be protected even when those posts are viewed by the employer’s customers<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[65,247,89],"tags":[],"coauthors":[139],"class_list":["post-1226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-insights","category-labor-employment-insights","category-lindabury"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSecond Circuit Backs NLRB: Facebook \u201cLike\u201d May Be Protected Concerted Activity Under Section 7 of the NLRA — March 9, 2016 — Lindabury, McCormick, Estabrook & Cooper, P.C. 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