Social Media Policies for Employees

In the last article, we discussed creating internal social media policies/guidelines for staff who are authorized to post via the library’s social media account. This week, we will discuss guidelines/policies for employees who have personal accounts on social media. 

These guidelines are not meant to limit or restrict an employee’s rights to utilize social media for personal reasons. They are meant to keep the library, employees, and patrons safe. 

Some things to consider when creating guidelines/policies: 

• Employees need to understand that they cannot disclose any patron information, including confidential, personal, or anything that could identify the person. 
• Employees cannot post any confidential work information. 
• Are employees allowed to be on social media during work?  
• If the employee’s profile indicates they work at the library, do you want them to include a statement in their profile that says the opinions expressed here are their own and not a reflection of the library? Or is it enough to just have them clearly state that their opinions do not represent the library’s official policy in the post/comment about the library? 
• With the prevalence of online bullying, you may want to add a section about employees not using social media to harass, threaten, bully, libel, slander, etc., coworkers, board members, patrons, or any other organizations/people associated with the library.  
• Do you need a policy in place in case an employee posts or shares something that is offensive? 
• You might include something about copyright laws. 
• What are the consequences if someone goes against the guidelines/policies? 

Examples: 

Ela Area Public Library 
Comsewogue Public Library 
Cuyahoga Falls Library 

Make sure that all employees are aware of the guidelines and policies. Employees should always use good judgement and be respectful when commenting and posting, especially when it is related to the library. 

Reference: 
Kroski, Ellyssa. “Should Your Library Have a Social Media Policy?” School Library Journal. Accessed October 4, 2023. https://www.slj.com/story/should-your-library-have-a-social-media-policy.