The Business Expenses of Free Speech
Here is a juicy debate presented by Fast Company magazine … freedom of speech in the workplace, as characterized by your employees’ use of company networks to shop online, chat with friends, visit inappropriate websites and so on. It’s not a debate about the Don Imus angle, as in, if you were Imus’s boss, would you have fired him for his inappropriate expression of free speech? So many people mistakenly believe they are “guaranteed freedom of speech.” And that’s simply not so! If you check your Bill of Rights, you’ll note that all you really get is the promise that “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech.” That’s Congress, not an employer.
As a business owner, you are entitled to make rules abridging the freedoms of your employees on your equipment while you are paying for their time. There is an entire, huge, sloppy arena of places where you can draw your lines. Do you want to surveil your employees to confirm their activities? Is it ethical to do so? Is it truly productive to do so? It’s important for a business to establish its goals and list the specific tactics it will use to enforce those goals. There are legal ramifications to making incorrect choices so proceed with great care. The Fast Company debate is a good place to start pulling your thoughts together on this sensitive subject.
