Case Study: “Expensive Paperweight” Gets Fired
In April 2010, an employee of the Social Development Ministry Authority of Auckland (New Zealand) was sacked for posting on her Facebook account, referring to herself as a “very expensive paperweight,” “highly competent in the art of time wastage, blame-shifting and stationary [sic] theft.”1 Her favorite Facebook post was “hey boss, can I go home sick???” The Employment Relations Authority in Auckland did not uphold a complaint from the employee that she was unfairly dismissed. Understandably, the employer had lost trust and confidence in her. Another Authority member said the employee’s online comments “endorsed a stereotyped view of slothful and exploitative public servants.”
1Victoria Robinson, ...
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