Tweeting your way to Unemployment

Posted on September 14th, 2011. Written by Jamie Northrup.

It is no secret that today’s social society in no longer in the bar, but is online. With the rise of many major social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, and Myspace, the web has made it easier to connect, contact and follow friends and families. It may however, also cost you your job.

The big controversy today is the use of social media in employment prescreening and employee evaluation. Your latest tweet about the girl you don’t like, last image you uploaded of you at a frat party hitting the beer bong, or even the use of emoticons, can cost you future employment or even worse, cause you to lose your current job.

In a study conducted in 2009 of 2,600 companies, 45% said they used social media sites to evaluate candidates for employment. 35% of them admitted that what they saw caused them to pass on offering the person a position. It is a known fact that you only get one chance to make a first impression, however, what if that first impression isn’t face to face? What if your candidacy is determined based solely on your Facebook page? How can you avoid missing your dream job over a blurb about your ex?

In this same study performed by Careerbuilder.com, 53% of the companies stated they denied employment based on provocative or inappropriate photos. It is no secret that the internet offers the ability to “show what you got” but in a declining job market, you may want to cover up.

Out of these companies 44% claimed they denied employment based on photos showing the applicant drinking alcohol or using illicit drugs. It should be common sense that posts showing your new bong may cause controversy, however when you are looking for a company to consider you as a serious candidate for employment, you may want to remove them.

35% of the companies stated that they denied the candidates based on remarks and comments made about previous employers. In a world of social media, your Facebook page may one day replace your resume. If you want to be seriously considered for employment, boss bashing may not be the best route.

The rest of the study showed that 29% demonstrated poor communication skills, 26% posted discriminatory comments, 24% lied about their qualifications, and 20% shared confidential information about their previous employers. These were all reasons for the company to skip over the candidates.

At this point in time it is completely legal to utilize social media when screening for employees. In turn it there is no law against terminating an employee based on what was seen online either. If you go home and tweet about your boss you may find yourself packing your desk in the morning. Once you post online you turn your personal life into public information. Keeping a professional appearance online may keep your professional life in line.

Since this revolution in screening, there have been companies popping up around the globe specializing in social media background checks. Their sole purpose is to search potential candidates on all the popular social media sites and evaluate them based on the information found. There are no laws banning the use of this method coming in the near future as policing who views your page would be near impossible. So the best course of action when searching for a job would be to clean up your social media sites and become more presentable to those that may hire you.

London resident Roger Hathaway is a financial consultant and a content contributor for Payday Loans, a company which helps you out with an advance payday loan when you need money before your paycheck comes in.