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Harassment Via Social Media

• How many of you use social media?

• Social media can be a great way to connect with others. We can share photos, life events, and just about everything else.

• That being said, social media can leave a lasting impression, so it’s important to handle it with care and remember that the same rules found in Company policies apply to your social media use or online content if it impacts the workplace. As an example, employees are expected to treat each other with respect both in the physical workplace and online.

• Likewise, the Company’s anti-harassment policies apply to the physical workplace as well as the virtual work environment. Meaning harassment doesn’t have to occur on company property or company time for it to be against company policy when the harassing conduct has an impact on the workplace.

• Just like harassment that occurs at the physical workplace, online harassment is against Company policy if it is based on race, national origin, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity), age, disability, or genetic information.

• To give you an example, if a coworker posts on Instagram that he doesn’t think women should participate in the construction industry and tags his female coworker, Julie, in the post, the post could constitute sex-based harassment and violate Company policy.

• Let’s go through another example. A supervisor sends a private direct message on Facebook to an operator who is 60 years old and begins pressing him to transfer to a maintenance job because it’s less technology-focused now that the plant has moved to a more computer-based operations system. Raise your hand if you think this could be harassment.

• What about if the same supervisor also posts that older workers are not good with technology?

• These comments and the direct message could constitute harassment based on age.

• Likewise, if a plant manager posts a video on TikTok that depression is not a real illness and people are using it as an excuse to miss work, those comments could violate our policies.

• Harassers will be disciplined which may include termination. 

• If you experience, see, or hear about harassing behavior – including online – report it to a supervisor, Human Resources, Legal and Compliance, or use the Company’s Hotline, which is available on RPM’s website and is listed on the Speak Up posters in the plant.  

• Should you have concerns about reporting harassment, know that the Company prohibits retaliation against employees who make reports in good faith and takes efforts against retaliatory actions.