I agree with the bill. I think drug testing of applicants should also be banned. Am not so sure about criminal background checks.New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on Thursday vetoed a law passed by the legislature that would ban employers from Gov. Chris Christie closeupasking for the social media passwords of workers and applicants. Christie said that he would sign the bill if it were amended to exclude some of its more restrictive components.
New Jersey would have been the eighth state to stop businesses from snooping into their current or prospective employees’ Facebook and Twitter accounts, although the Jersey law would have gone several steps beyond the protections that other states have provided.
If the legislature removes provisions that ban employers from even asking about the existence of social media accounts, and if it adds language protecting employers’ ability to investigate workplace misconduct or data theft, Christie said he will sign it into law.
Christie’s preferred bill would still carry civil penalties of $1,000 for the first violation and $2,500 for subsequent ones, but not allow further private action to collect damages and attorney’s fees.
The bill that passed already allowed employers to ask to access accounts in the course of an investigation into harassment or discrimination.
The original bill passed 75-2, so the legislature could probably easily override the governor’s veto, although they may accede to his requests in the spirit of cooperation.
What do you think?
