SGEU

General information

SGEU represents over 20,000 members working in government, crown corporations, education, health and community-based organizations.

Social Media Policy:

Social media is an excellent tool used by SGEU to distribute our messaging and mobilize public support. Messaging is shared regarding the current work of the union as well as information on issues and events affecting the membership.

Common examples of social media forums include, but are not limited to blogs, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, chat rooms and YouTube. SGEU currently administers YouTube, Facebook and Twitter accounts as social media platforms for the organization. As new social media trends emerge, SGEU will evaluate the benefits of joining and using new platforms.

The Communications Department of SGEU holds the responsibility for administering and posting to SGEU social media accounts. There are a number of items that must be kept in mind when using social media forums:

 Information posted is available to others immediately.
 Information posted can be shared with others.
 Confidential information should never be posted.
 Careless social media use can cause damage to SGEU’s reputation and our ability to represent members effectively.

It is also important to remember that Facebook is not a forum for members to address individual member issues. Please contact SGEU at 1-800-667-5221 if you have concerns or questions about your collective agreement or a grievance.

Once a message is posted by the Communications Department, others can respond. The Communications Department is responsible for monitoring these responses, and if applicable, comment on posts made by others.

In the event a post submitted is considered inappropriate, the Communications Department has the discretion and authority to delete a post that is not in line with this policy.

Inappropriate comments that could be deleted would include, but not be excluded to, the following:

 Posts that are defamatory to an SGEU member or employee;
 Posts that are considered racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, or contains discriminatory remarks or images;
 Posts that contain inflammatory comments, unprofessional remarks or disparaging remarks about others;
 Posts that violate a confidentiality agreement or workplace code of conduct;
 Posts that are considered to be a form of harassment in any way.

In circumstances where a person’s posts are required to be deleted, the Communications Department will contact the person to advise them that their comments are in breach of SGEU’s social media policy.

If the person continues to post inappropriate comments, the Communications Department will make every attempt to block or remove that person from accessing the applicable SGEU social media forum. Before blocking someone, the Communications Department will send the person a private message advising that they will be blocked.

SGEU welcomes critical debate and disagreement, and at the same time seeks to ensure that its social media platforms provide a safe space for all to participate in online discussion, without fear of harassment, insult or bigotry. As such, commenters should abide by the following rules:

 No hate speech.
 Don’t use obscene language.
 Use a constructive, civil and respectful tone.
 Don’t personally attack any person or group of people with which you disagree.
 Don’t post comments that are derogatory about your co-workers, supervisor, management and/or workplace.
 Don’t disclose confidential information or any information that violates the privacy of another person.
 Don’t impersonate someone you’re not.
 Don’t comment from multiple accounts.
 Stick to the topic of the post by responding to the content in the article or post.