The onset of the mid-2000’s paved the way for the existence of social media sites. As the second decade of the 21st century came and progressed, the use of social media sites, particularly Facebook and Twitter, continuously increased among people from all over the world. In the past 10 years or so, nobody should hardly encounter any other person who does not have a Facebook account. In fact, according to an article in Search Engine Watch,  nearly 70 percent of Fortune 500 companies are on Facebook; 77 percent  have corporate Twitter accounts. The ongoing trend of social media usage does constitutes that users use such social media sites responsibly. There are still times, though, that some people do not use Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites appropriately. In particular, when people do not use such sites appropriately, they risk losing their jobs. Below are tips to refer to for  using social media sites appropriately so as to not lose your job:

Do not  access and/or use your social media accounts at work when it is not break time.

There are employees who do get fired due to access/usage of social media accounts/sites during work hours. Most companies do allow usage of social media sites and access to social media accounts in the work place. However, companies usually allow employees to perform such activities in the work place during break time for lunch or  snacks. Many employees violate their companies’ rules and policies by still sneakily using and accessing social media sites and accounts during work hours. Once they are caught violating the said social media usage policy at work, they tend to get fired from their job.

Do not post  company related information on social media sites.

The management of companies, especially corporate ones,  usually prohibit disclosure of its operational and corporate information to the  public. Generally, such information is usually allowable for disclosure, provided it is disclosed only to people who have business transactions  with the companies. Sometimes, employees are not careful in constantly self-monitoring the things they post on social media. As such, unintentionally, at times, they are guilty of  disclosing company information to people who do not have business transactions with the companies they are working for.

Stay away from pornography, sexually explicit jokes, or inappropriate screen savers

Of course, the settings of work places of all companies are strictly professional. As such, viewing pornographic materials, posting sexually explicit jokes, or saving inappropriate screen savers when using social media at work are definitely a no-no. Employees need to familiarize themselves with such social media professional usage ethics before they use social media at work. Ignorance is not an excuse for not being aware of  the social media usage ethics mentioned.

Don’t spread rumors, gossips, and negative defamatory comments.

Employees who have ill feelings towards the management of the companies they work for are usually guilty of committing this offense.  These employees wrongly think that they should be able to exact revenge towards their employers by destroying their companies’ reputation online in social media sites. What these employees do not know that such action just goes back to them in the long run, somewhere down the road. Negative or defamatory comments, rumors, and gossips spread by employees about their employers are easily detected by persons from the companies responsible for executing social media investigations. Once such comments are detected to have been made by the employees, most of the time, employees are fired from their jobs immediately.

People should be able to succeed in appropriately and responsibly use social media only if they are determined to conscientiously do so.  Constantly double check the things you post on social media and your  social media activities. Doing so would  ensure that you are always using social media appropriately. Earning a living is what  enables every person to survive in this world. Not risking losing your job due to inappropriate usage of social media  needs to be one of your major priorities in life.