I was recently surfing Facebook and saw that a former staff’s page not only implied they still worked at this organization, but wildly inflated their job title. What can the organization do?

I am always surprised to hear that people are still so careless with what they put on their Facebook page. With all of the media attention discussing employers viewing Facebook posts made by staff and potential staff, it would seem that people would want to be a little more discreet. That being said, situations like this, where a former employee inflates their former role in the organization, do happen more frequently than you might expect.

Since all relationships are not the same, depending on your history with the former employee, you may choose a hard or soft approach to this situation. Was this person in good standing with the organization prior to leaving? Or were their performance issues? Have you maintained relations since they left the organization? Is this relationship important to you and your organization or is it disposable? How well did the former employee respond to feedback while with the organization? What approach worked best when discussing issues with them?

Your experience with the former employee and whether or not it is important to keep an ongoing relationship with them will determine the most effective route for you to take.

If you still have a relationship with this person, the simplest and most direct route is to have an open and honest conversation. This will hopefully help you maintain sound relations with the former employee.

Let the person know that you valued their input as a member of your team when s/he was with your organization and that an ongoing relationship is important to you (if, in fact, this is true).

Tell them that you are concerned that they are misrepresenting their role with your organization. Inform the person that you are aware of the information that is posted on their FB page. Let them know that you feel it is not a fair representation of their role with your organization and clarify the dates they worked for you and the role they filled.

You’ll also want to be clear that you would like to see the information changed to more accurately reflect their role with your organization.

Clarify that your concerns are understood and gain a commitment and timeline for the change. Check to ensure that the information has been changed by the specified date and, of course, follow up with a thank you note or call if the info has changed as per your request.

If the friendly route does not work for you, or if relations do not allow for this approach, Robert Smithson of Smithson Employment Law Corporation suggests clear action.

“The first step, without a doubt, is to communicate with the former employee, in writing, to demand that he or she cease and desist misrepresenting his or her employment situation,” he says. “Provide a firm date by which the misrepresentation must be removed from all online sites. Deliver the letter in a manner which provides proof of delivery. Once the stipulated time frame has elapsed, check to see if there are any indications that the misrepresentation is still being published online. If so, contact a lawyer to discuss initiating formal proceedings to compel the former employee to cease the publication of the misrepresentation.”

If the latter is the most appropriate route for you, do ensure that you speak with a lawyer that has experience in employment law.

Robert Smithson has more than 16 years in employment law and focuses exclusively on legal problems that arise in the workplace. He also maintains the You Work Here blog.

To submit a question for a future column, or to comment on a previous one, please contact editor@charityvillage.com. No identifying information will appear in this column. For paid professional advice about an urgent or complex situation, contact Kathline directly.

For more information about workforce planning, assistance with your workforce planning needs or to attend our upcoming webinar on this topic, please visit www.gailforceresources.com or email: info@gailforceresources.com.

Disclaimer: Advice and recommendations are based on limited information provided and should be used as a guideline only. Neither the author nor CharityVillage.com make any warranty, express or implied, or assume any legal liability for accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information provided in whole or in part within this article.

Please note: While we ensure that all links and e-mail addresses are accurate at their publishing date, the quick-changing nature of the web means that some links to other web sites and e-mail addresses may no longer be accurate.