FAQ: Facebook and Business Contracts

Question: I recently bought a business but the vendor refuses to hand over control of the Facebook page used by the business. It has a good following so it is an important way for us to get work. What can I do about it?

Answer: The Standard Contract for the sale of businesses promoted by the REIQ and the Queensland Law Society does not cover this. Your lawyer should have included a Special Condition requiring the vendors to make you an administrator of the Facebook page so you could then remove them and take control yourself.

http://www.mckayslaw.com

For more information call us on 1800 922 609.

Don’t lose your job over a Facebook status…

Think it’s fun to slag off the boss or colleagues on social media? Think again, because your rant on Facebook could cost you your job.

Employers regularly access social media, where their staff can post offensive remarks about their bosses or colleagues, or divulge confidential business information, for which a worker could be disciplined or sacked.

Often fellow staff members dob in their colleagues to the boss for inappropriate social media posts. A colleague may see an offending post on a social media site, be upset by the remarks, and complain to the employer.

The employer then has a triple problem to deal with – the employee who has made the posts, the upset colleague and the unknown risk of how many other people have seen the post. Employers can feel forced to take firm and quick action against the offending employee.

Did you know:

• Managers who go about it the right way could be legally within their rights to discipline staff for using social media sites to complain about managers or fellow workers.
• There are cases where employers are quite justified to dismiss a person for serious misconduct for highly inappropriate social media postings. However, employers have to be careful not to overreact. Not every social media comment deserves tough action when guidance to the employee about how to appropriately use social media would be enough.
• Younger employees might be shocked to realise their managers could be more internet and social media-savvy than them. Like it or not, it’s routine now for employers to check social media sites as a background check for job applicants, or to check on staff who are persistently ill around weekends. A prospective employer would be wary of hiring someone whose social media pages were filled with personal attacks on managers and workmates. So-called privacy settings do not guarantee privacy. If anyone else can access your posts then your posts are vulnerable.

Employers are urged to realise that many younger employees do not see any separation from private and work life.

All employers should consider some form of education of social media etiquette for staff and the firm’s expectations of staff behaviour.

http://www.mckayslaw.com

For more advice, give us a call on 1800 922 609

Don’t End up Bitter over Twitter

The importance of online presence and marketing for businesses big and small cannot be understated. Aside from just a webpage, many businesses are now using Facebook and Twitter to get their name out there.

Facebook and Twitter accounts should not be forgotten when buying or selling a business. Neither are dealt with in the standard Real Estate Insistute of Queensland (REIQ) business contract. So, to protect your clients (especially when they are buying) and ensure they receive all business assets, a special condition dealing with Facebook pages and Twitter accounts will need to be inserted by their solicitor.

If you are looking at buying or selling a business, our business team are more than happy to discuss this further.

For more information please contact us on 1800 922 609.