Should networking sites be banned from work?

Sollte es Mitarbeitern erlaubt sein, am Arbeitsplatz ihre privaten Internetkontakte zu pflegen, oder hat dies dort überhaupt nichts zu suchen? Vicki Sussens-Messerer hat zwei Meinungen gehört.

No!

Brendan Barber is the general secretary of the national British trade-union organization TUC (Trades Union Congress), which is based in London. www.tuc.org.uk

Brendan Barber

Rather than simply banning social-networking sites at work, employers should make sure they have policies that cover their use, so that there are no unpleasant surprises for either employer or employee if things should go wrong.

While employers have the right to stop staff from using social-networking sites at work, a total ban is an overreaction. Sensible employers should realize that their staff spend many of their waking hours at work and should be trusted to spend a few minutes of their lunch break “poking” their friends or making plans for outside work.