In view of the extent of social networks and their easy accessibility, employers are strongly advised to regulate their use by their employees. This seems all the more important as this issue has not yet been decided by the Swiss courts. However, some of the behaviours to be adopted can be outlined below.
1. Employer’s duties
- Professional networks (LinkedIn, Viadeo, etc.) fall within the scope of professional activity and should be allowed to be used.
- Private networks (e.g. Facebook) fall within the employee’s personal sphere. This is particularly the case when political or religious opinions are shared. Therefore, the employer may only collect such data with the employee’s consent and only if there is a justifiable reason and a suspicion of a serious offence.
2. Duties of the employee
The main duties of the employee with regard to the use of social networks are 3. Thus, the employee :
- Must not denigrate his company, his colleagues or any third party in business with the said company. They must not disclose private information about their colleagues and must not “cyber-harass” anyone.
- Must not share confidential information related to their company (trade secrets, customer lists, etc.) on social networks. Membership of groups detrimental to the interests of their employer is also punishable.
Should not spend excessive time on social networks which could be detrimental to their productivity.
3. Internal regulations and sanctions
The employer is fully entitled to specify the use of social networks in its internal regulations. It can thus:
- Authorise their use, or even encourage it.
- Prohibit their use altogether.
- Block their access by computer.
Whichever option is chosen, it must be specified in writing by the employer, as must the sanctions in the event of non-compliance.
