Who owns your employee’s LinkedIn account?

The HR Dept is warning business owners to perform checks on who their employees connect with on social media sites like LinkedIn and Twitter. Asking an employee to delete or hand over their connections upon termination of employment is a very under represented area of employment law.

If an employee connects with existing or potential clients and contacts as part of their role through LinkedIn or Twitter, logic would say that data belongs to the business. Simon Morgan, Director of the HR Dept [South East London and North Kent] states “It turns out it really isn’t that simple and there aren’t many precedents or laws to cover LinkedIn ownership once someone has left your business.”

Where the use of LinkedIn and other social media is a normal way of doing business, employers should ensure they have well drafted employment contracts that contain restrictive covenants. During a period of post - employment restriction, if a former employee tries to solicit clients they dealt with during employment, businesses can apply for an injunction to stop them. Albeit expensive, this could be a necessary step to protect a business interest. When someone leaves, updating their profile will alert all of their connections to their change in employment.

Though potentially confidential information, it is difficult to ask a leaving employee to either delete or handover their social media account because that information has been made public.

The HR Dept is recommending to its clients that until there is more case law, they monitor who their employees connect with through social media and review any policies relating to contacting key contacts and clients through social media for their own protection.

Businesses should also ensure that it isn’t damaging their future business interest if employees are advertising their connections or clients, which they might wish to remain confidential. Each individual case will be different, but it is an area which business owners should be aware of.

The HR Dept specialises in advising small and medium sized businesses on all employment and HR issues.