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…)