By Request - Big brother is always watching and is gonna get you fired!

Can criticizing the boss on Facebook get you fired?

Absolutely.

Wait, I know, this goes against everything you might expect of me. Allow me to explain.

If you are dumbass enough to badmouth your boss/place of employment on a public forum (such as Facebook), full-well knowing your boss, or other people, can see it, then you deserve to get fired.

Have I badmouthed my boss on Facebook? Yes, yes I have. (Most of you remember him as “crazy man.”) But you know what, he wasn’t my friend on Facebook, my profile is private (for that reason, among others) – and being that I was the only other person in the office, I knew I wasn’t going to get caught.

When I worked at Lexmark, in Corporate Communications, I was friends with a lot of my co-workers. My new boss requested to be my friend. Ignore. I didn’t want him seeing my ranting and raving, regardless of if it was about him or not. (Which it wasn’t, at least not overtly, because I knew better.) I know when to watch what I say on Facebook about my employer.

The fact is this, after spending a year and a half looking for a decent job, I don’t want to do something stupid to screw it up to send me back to countless days of waiting by the phone for calls for job offers that never happen.

Have I whined about my current job on Facebook recently? Absolutely I have. But at the same time, it’s a very random gripe. For example, today’s was along the lines of “Customers, who needs ‘em?” Anyone who has a customer-facing role will have this sentiment at some point in time – and since I deal with multiple customers, you don’t even know who I’m talking about. No one can claim anything but that I’m in a bitchy mood today. If you didn’t pick up on that, then you aren’t paying attention. (And if I get fired for being in a bitchy mood, I’m so calling shenanigans because, well, everyone has a bad day.)

Furthermore, I know people who check others’ Facebook/MySpace (that is so 2005)/blogs/etc. for any information they can gather on the individual before offering a job. So even if your ranting and raving about your boss doesn’t get you fired, it’s very possible for you to not get a job in the future because someone noticed your not-so-pleasant disposition and mentality about work. I am aware that my “Customers, who needs ‘em” status today could actually work against me given this possibility, but you know, we can’t be saints all the time, okay?

From a legal standpoint, libel is a very distinct possibility on Facebook. It’s published for more than one person to read, and if someone can discern it was about them, and it damages their reputation, all they have to prove is that you did it with intent to harm (which wouldn’t be hard) and bam, you’re just a losing libel statistic. Insult to injury after losing your job for the same comment, don’t you think?

The fact of the matter is this: We all have bad days. We all want to vent. Facebook gives you a great opportunity. Especially, at times, at the expense of others. But there are certain things you need to keep to yourself. Even moreso if you have people on your friends list who wield power over you or people on your friends list who are willing to narc to people who wield power over you.

Yes, Virginia, real life is just like kindergarten sometimes. (They don’t call it “Everything I Need To Know About Life I Learned In Kindergarten” for no reason.)