Nearly 25% Of Employees Banned From Using Social Media At Work

I was surprised to read recently that, despite the exploding interest in social media, some businesses still balk at using social platforms in the office. This is according to social media management system HootSuite, which conducted an informal survey amongst its five million followers to find out whether they are allowed to use social media whilst at work.

The results prove that, according to nearly a quarter of employees, businesses are still hesitant as to giving staff access to such networks at the office. Many of the respondents said access to all social media websites was restricted at their workplace or they were only allowed to visit platforms for particular reasons, such as “recruiting purposes” or on corporate accounts, The Drum reports.

Some of the respondents banned from using social media at work said their bosses had blocked networking sites or selected particular websites staff are allowed to use. One of the respondents said he was allowed to access Twitter, but not Facebook. Another stated he had free access to all networks except for Facebook and YouTube.

The majority of Hootsuite’s followers, however, said social media was not an area of restricted access at their office. These were mainly social media managers, marketers and PRs, who explained that social media had a vital role in their job. People working as police officers, lawyers and employees from a broad number of other industries also said they were now urged to use social media at the workplace to better perform their duties.