{"id":23285,"date":"2020-12-08T02:30:57","date_gmt":"2020-12-08T02:30:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=23285"},"modified":"2020-12-09T13:46:50","modified_gmt":"2020-12-09T13:46:50","slug":"how-tiktok-is-upending-workplace-social-media-policies-and-giving-us-rebel-nurses-and-dancing-cops","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/how-tiktok-is-upending-workplace-social-media-policies-and-giving-us-rebel-nurses-and-dancing-cops\/","title":{"rendered":"How TikTok is upending workplace social media policies \u2013 and giving us rebel nurses and dancing cops"},"content":{"rendered":"

Elizabeth C. Tippett<\/a>, University of Oregon<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

As the Thanksgiving holiday was winding down, a medical center in Salem, Oregon, found itself in the middle of a frothing social media mess<\/a>. A nurse named Ashley Grames<\/a> posted a video on TikTok that went viral in which she mock-confessed to ignoring coronavirus health guidelines.<\/p>\n

The video \u2013 which Grames has since taken down, though it remains available on other feeds<\/a> \u2013 is less than 15 seconds long. And if you\u2019re not familiar<\/a> with TikTok tropes, the video will seem very weird. The nurse is wearing scrubs and seemingly at a medical facility. She lip-syncs to a short audio clip from \u201cThe Grinch\u201d and mocks her co-workers\u2019 outrage at her decision to flout the state mask mandate<\/a> outside of work.<\/p>\n

The nurse\u2019s antics drew some unflattering attention to her employer, Salem Health, which on Dec. 8 confirmed she\u2019s no longer employed there<\/a> after an investigation. But it highlighted the ease with which employees can pull out a phone on the sly and share a little clip before the boss is any the wiser. Popular examples include a Domino\u2019s Pizza cook<\/a>, an Amazon warehouse worker and Starbucks baristas<\/a>. Their employers thus serve as unwitting backdrops \u2013 with the logos, uniforms and workplaces on full display.<\/p>\n

As a law professor who studies workplace practices<\/a> and policies, I find the mass of workplace TikTok videos somewhat surprising. That\u2019s because even the most innocuous videos likely violate standard corporate social media policies<\/a>, which tend to require a strict separation<\/a> between the corporate brand and one\u2019s personal life. Workers are generally not allowed speak on behalf of the company<\/a> or use the company brand<\/a> or facilities<\/a> without permission. These policies also warn against embarrassing the company<\/a> or mocking customers<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s pretty much impossible to dance with your uniform on in the backroom without violating those rules \u2013 so why aren\u2019t companies cracking down more?<\/p>\n