An article that I found very interesting in my Human Resource management class was “Facebook Passwords and the Interview Process” by HRresource.com. This article is about employers asking job candidates for their facebook password in order to get to know them outside of the typical interview process.
This article lays out the pros and cons of asking for facebook passwords from candidates. For the pros it states that employers will be able to “1) learn about candidates background through personal information. 2) Take an in-depth look at the type of person they are adding to their staff. 3) Investigate comments and photos not found else where. 4) Provide insight into the applicant’s personality” (HRresouce).
Furthermore, it can also help companies save money and time by helping the interviewer learn more about the candidate in a few minutes then what they could learn in a simply interview.
For the cons it states that this may seem as an invasion of privacy by candidates which could affect a companies reputation. It caould limit the companies hiring choices because many people might not want to apply. Candidates that might not have an account could be affected and not be able to apply because they are not facebook users.
I truly disagree with this new procedure of hiring. It is definitely an invasion of privacy. I don’t think facebook could really tell much about a persons personality. I believe people know how to act in their personal life and in their professional life. Facebook is somewhere where one can express themselves without being judged or just used for entertainment.
What if a candidate is gay and they don’t want the employer to know, but in facebook it shows or if someone is cheating on their spouse and that information is in their inbox and the employer sees it. Is the employer really going to judge the candidate by what they find on someone’s page? Companies might loose out on great candidates because of this procedure. However people might have to start creating professional facebook accounts to qualify.
http://www.hrresource.com/articles/view.php?article_id=5911
Irma Matias
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I read that article from my Human Resources class also, and that’s one of my article review homework. I think the employers should not do that because it’s relates to the privacy of the employees. Since so many people post their privacy information on Facebook, such as the phone number and address. Therefore, I think this’s not a good way to hire someone.
WOW, this is an riveting topic. I would not provide that information either. I feel that facebook is a social media platform in which people are just that, social. I think asking to be connected via linkin, on the other hand, is OK. Better yet, maybe professionals should do as you are doing and create profiles for professional consideration.
With that said, remember that people are looking at FB and you should monitor what isa on your page.