US
US banks aren’t exactly known for a glasnost-style approach to employees who talk openly to the press. But when it comes to blogging they err even more on the side of despotism than usual.
Back in August, Citigroup identified and eliminated Michael McCarthy. McCarthy was a trader at the bank who also happened to run Take A Report, a blog featuring women in states of near undress, but which makes no reference to his employer, redundancies or Vikram Pandit.
A month or so later, 1-2 Knockout, an anonymous US blogger writing for an equally anonymous US bank, was allegedly sacked following the revelation that he was writing something which was not a research report.
And Goldman is said to have banned all its employees from using chat rooms or visiting blogs whilst at work.
Is this fair? We think not. Feel free to agree wholeheartedly (or not) below.
In this environment banks need to be incredibly careful about how disaffected employees portray them in the media. One can hardly blame banks for being cautious. The same employees who are being asked to restrict what they say in public have been handsomely remunerated for a long time. They can hardly complain.
I write a blog and consider it an important part of my freedom of speech. I would be truly mortified if my employer were to unearth my identity, however.
Banks stopping employees accessing the internet? Sounds like China!
1-2 was indeed let go, and blogging may or may not have had something to do with it, but I’ll leave 1-2 to comment on that if he so desires.
What it comes down to is that most all of our contracts have explicit language in several areas (i.e. work computers/resources must be used for work purposed only) which give the Firm reason – not that they need it with the proliferation of “at-will” contracts – to dismiss anyone found out to be misappropriating Firm resources.
It is not difficult for them to find out, and in our current environment, many firms are just waiting for employees to give them an easy-out to cut headcount.
While I’m still working on The Street, the days when bloggers could post with impunity regardless of location are over. You need to make sure now, more than ever, that you CYA, and don’t give your employers any reason to suspect you, or worse.
@ The Final Say
Banks do, and should, make sure that they aren’t arming employers with the ammo to defame them, however, their legal team is far larger than yours likely is, so keep that in mind.
Feel free to reach out,
Anal_yst
Co-writer
http://1-2knockout.typepad.com
Blogging after office hours is really non of the bank’s business!! Bogging is a way to vent frustrations….