10 things to include in your company’s social media policy

“I haven’t slept well in days, thanks to my boss.” (Tweet when your boss is following you on Twitter)

“I am at the pool.” (Facebook update while on sick leave)

Cases of employee firings for social media missteps like the above have been on the rise. Recently, a woman from Connecticut was fired shortly after she posted on Facebook inappropriate remarks regarding her boss.

Recently high school teacher Natalie Munroe was suspended from her job in suburban Philadelphia after she blogged about her students, calling them “disengaged, lazy whiners,” among other unflattering remarks.

According to a 2009 study by Internet security firm Proofpoint, 8 percent of companies with more than 1,000 employees have fired someone for social media actions—double what was reported in 2008.

Let’s be honest, we all know that Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are probably the most visited sites during working hours. I am curious whether there is research on how much time employees spend on social networks versus actually working.