I know a lot of you don’t take Twitter seriously, but a recent rogue tweet by a once-prominent CEO proves otherwise.

Jack Welch, the former head of General Electric who went on to make a career for himself as a writer for a host of business publications, decided to take his political fervor for Mitt Romney and trash the staff at the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, or BLS.

You see, he was apparently upset that the BLS’ unemployment data for September showed a drop in the jobless rate and wrote a tweet that questioned the integrity of the BLS numbers.

Here’s his tweet:

“Unbelievable jobs numbers…these Chicago guys will do anything…can’t debate so change numbers.”

I was particularly perturbed over Welch’s tweet because I know many of the folks at the BLS and they’ve always seemed to have the utmost integrity no matter which administration they served under. But clearly, Welch has a right to say what ever the heck he wants.

But, and here’s the big but, it can end up hurting your career, as it appears to have in Welch’s case. (more…)

Conventional wisdom has been that you err on the side of caution when it comes to putting anything out there in cyber space, especially if it relates in anyway to your employer. The thinking has been, “you never know when the boss is watching.”

That idea is slowly changing as the government continues to scrutinize employers who fire workers for exercising their free speech rights on social networking sites, especially when it comes to dogging your employer. The way officials at the National Labor Relations Board see it, Facebook and Twitter are no different than traditional water-cooler chatter.

Basically, if workers get together to discuss working conditions at their employer that’s considered protected speech under the nation’s labor laws. So, doing the same on the Internet is no different, the federal agency argues. (more…)

Wael Ghonim is a nerdy computer engineer who is a manager at Google, and has a side gig overthrowing the Egyptian government.

It’s a perfect example of not just a battle for freedom in Egypt but a battle for freedom of speech for employees everywhere, especially those in the United States. Yes, the good old, supposedly-free United States.

When it comes to a worker’s free speech rights outside of offices and factories, employers can stomp on them if they choose. Basically, if you don’t work for the government, or have a union contract that stipulates otherwise, an employer can fire you for what you say, or tweet outside of the workplace.

Ghonim has already faced a harrowing experience after being detained by security forces in Egypt and spending a week blindfolded. But another big battle may still lie ahead for him, a battle for his career.

He told CNN: “I have a lot to lose in this life. I, you know, I work, or, you know, now as I’m on a leave of absence, I work for the best company to work for in the world.”

Will Google fire Ghonim? (more…)

There’s a lot of good information out there for job hunters and people who want to advance in their careers. But there’s also a lot of crap.

I don’t mind either kind if it comes from an honest place. By honest I mean the career source providing the information is doing it because they want to inform you and not because a company pays them money to promote a certain product or service.

Recently, I’ve noticed a growing number of so-called career experts who are actually paid spokespeople. These experts are touting the companies that pay them in blogs, and as sources in news stories for major publications, but not readily disclosing who’s bankrolling them. I’m telling you this because it’s always a good idea to think about what might be motivating the advice you hear.

Beware the bull! (more…)

OK, I know all the parents out there are worried their kids are tweeting and texting about sex, drugs and rock n roll. But are any of you worried about what they’re saying about you?

You tell kids stuff about your crummy job, or they overhear you bitching, and there’s a good chance they may end up telling their friends. But they don’t just tell their friends on the muddy playground anymore folks, they tell their friends on the social media playground — Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter.

Yes, if you’re mad and complaining about your boss or job, there’s a chance your kids are listening. And if your kids are upset enough at what you’re upset about they may actually Facebook or tweet something about it.

One daughter of a pissed off dad did just that. (more…)

This morning I’m heading to Washington to cover the 20th anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities Act.

The event will be held at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which also rang in its 45th birthday this month.

While the ADA has transformed our nation by opening up doors for many disabled individuals in the workplace, almost everyone I’ve spoken with in these past few weeks leading up to today, even the strongest advocates of the ADA, say we are no where near creating a level playing field for people with disabilities in the workplace. (more…)

I’m asked often about whether maintaining a blog can help or hinder a career, or job search.

The answer: I don’t know. No one knows for sure, I don’t care what the social media gurus say.

There are so many factors that can go into your decision to blog. That means you have to do your own personal pro-and-con blogging inventory.

Take Eric Zinn. (more…)