Any Law Enforcement Union Stewards on here or Employment Lawyers?

[PaulyB]

Just have a question about freedom of speech for LEOs....

Thanks!

 

[bronze_10]

Good luck with that... LEO have the same as everyone else but your department still has some say in what you can and can not say calling it a reflection on their department. I only post funny dog pics on facebook or nfl stuff.... Many of my co-workers have been hammered for stuff on fb and many have taken down their fb sites completely to avoid issues. And needless to say anything they can find on your facebook account can be brought up in court.

 

[PaulyB]

Yeah, I am a federal LEO, and made a comment about our president and how I feel about him and the status of our country, while I was off-duty, and my agency is using that as part of a discipline proposal. I feel my statement should be protected speech, just want to see what others that are more informed would think. If you're interested, you can message me and I will explain a little more...

Thanks.

 

[Cobra Jet Steering LLC]

It is a very slippery slope, especially with the federal government but I understand that as an individual you have your own opinion but if you in any way represent an official agency and you post on public media as such or on a page that makes it obvious from previous posts or information that you are a member of an organization, they usually have rules of conduct that prohibit any of that to insulate the agency from controversy and keep it running smooth and impartial. I have served on the boar of directors of a police union, been a police officer for 23 years and a chief 3 of those years but I always told it like it was and as you can guess I was very outspoken in many situations, each time I paid the price and never backed down so if you believe in something so deeply that it is worth loosing your job over then go for it and expect the worst, politicks makes strange bed fellows . Remember how they see it, If they let you do it then they have to let everyone do it and they don't want to open those doors even a little. I have a perspective from a union rep side and an admin side plus a rebel side . having been on all those sides.
One thing I learned is todays news is on the bottom of the bird cage tomorrow and Most people have no clue because they really don't care. If it doesn't directly effect them they could not care less, just tell them what's for dinner and what's on TV and they live fat dumb and happily ever after. SAD but I learned that the hard way, so I would look for a way to minimize the damage and move on. I was too stubborn and idealistic to do that.
Next time create a bogus account and post it with no affiliation to any agency as long as you don't post information that is not public knowledge or is classified etc. and don't tell a soul ! But that's just my opinion I could be wrong! I can say you may have set your career back a few years, and don't expect others to stand up for you even though they were on your side they will save themselves and try to distance themselves from you to avoid being fragged. remember your bosses answer to someone and those people answer to someone and eventually it goes all the way to the top and we all know what rolls down from the top.

 

[bronze_10]

That's why I say.... just post funny canine pics! it's just much more simple!

 

[OCMD]

PM Me with your question. I am, and have been both. I have viewed it extensively from the 2 foregoing sides, as well as from the side of the arbitrator deciding the case. Exclusive to LEO cases, for over 30 years.

 

[MrWizard]

When I worked for the Sheriff in NC we were told on day 1 that everything we did represented the man we were under. Needless to say I was VERY selective regarding my online presence. We had numerous officers reprimanded (up to a year probationary status, ie promotion denied) for their comments online.
I understand that everything I did "could" be a reflection of the Sheriff, I think more especially since it is a electable office. I didn't want to be "that guy" in the news if you know what I'm saying.
Good luck with your case, hopefully it doesn't bite too hard at you.

 

[Evildwarf]

I'm not on the cop side of the fence but I've been career fire for 20+ years in a busy urban department and we have seen plenty of cases across the fire service nationally where the employers right to control the employees on line speech trumps the employees rights to free speech.

You have the right to free speech. But you also have a duty to your JHA in any forum in which you represent yourself or can be identified as an employee of the JHA. So if your FB page identifies you with your employer then your online speech is governed by the employers social media policies.

Now, that being said, political speech is the most protected form of speech. Therefore depending on what you said and what your role as a federal officer is you may be able to defend your position.

I don't have any social media (FB, Twitter etc) because of this type of stuff. Many careers have been torpedoed by this very issue and it is just as often accidental as purposeful.

In the end I hope you can obtain a satisfactory outcome to your situation.