Can the government make a civil service employee start a facebook account that goes out to the public?

Get Legal Help Today

Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption

Can the government make a civil service employee start a facebook account that goes out to the public?

I cannot believe they can make you use your real name on the world-wide web. This is the US government. That cant be right that they can make us use our real names and anyone and everyone can google us or facebook us. What if I am hiding from an abusive ex-spouse?

Asked on November 12, 2010 under Employment Labor Law, Florida

Answers:

SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 13 years ago | Contributor

Employers, including the government, can set terms and conditions of employment. A term or condition can be that the employee maintains a social media account or otherwise is identified to the public. (There's even some reason or sense for this--e.g. as part of a transparency initiative). Many government employees, including civil service, are publically identified, even on webpages, and are not able to labor in anonymity; think about judges and the clerks and secretaries; the heads of local post offices or libraries; teachers and school administrators; many police and fire; etc. If  someone does not wish to comply with the policy about contact, communication, or social media, that person can leave the employment. Less drastically, that person can certainly talk to his/her supervisors and see if there's any compromise or accomodation, but this can be made a requirement of jobs.


IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.

Get Legal Help Today

Find the right lawyer for your legal issue.

secured lock Secured with SHA-256 Encryption