Freshman Lauren Silcox keeps her Facebook page professional, not only because her family members might see it, but also because her potential employers might look at it.
Sophomore Autumn Kunkel and her friends have made a mutual agreement not to post any incriminating photos of each other on Facebook for the same reason.
Both Silcox and Kunkel have the right idea according to Pam Fahle, manager at Adecco Employment Services.
Employers do look at potential and current employees’s Facebook pages to get a better sense of potential to hirees, Fahle said.
“They look at just about everything to see if there’s any inappropriate material on there,” Fahle said. “It will open your eyes to see what people post on Facebook.”
Adecco Employment Services, located on North Main Street, is a workforce solutions service that provides job seekers an access point to opportunities and resources, as well as services for employers looking for employees.
Adecco does not hire people, rather, it assists people in finding jobs, Fahle said. She said she cannot turn someone away from their services because of what they put on Facebook, but employers the company works with do look at Facebook.
“Sometimes questions will come up in interviews based on what an employer has found on Facebook,” Fahle said. “I’ve had some employers say that they’ve seen things on there that they just can’t hire someone because of.”
Kunkel said she has also heard about schools looking at students’ Facebook pages.
“I’ve heard of one student who applied to a college and had got a hefty scholarship and lost it because of what the college found on his Facebook page,” Kunkel said. “That freaked me out. Even though I don’t post anything bad on there, it still freaked me out.”
Kunkel said she monitors what she puts on Facebook and would never post anything that could potentially hurt her in the future.
“I have funny, embarrassing pictures, but nothing incriminating,” Kunkel said.
Silcox said she thinks employers are able to get a more in-depth look at whom they are hiring by looking at their Facebook pages.
“I think it is fair for employers to look at what you’re posting because it’s what your personality is like,” Silcox said. “Employers can see what type of person you are outside an interview to see if you’re reliable and telling the truth.”
Silcox said she always watches what she posts and uses a professional email. However, she doesn’t monitor Twitter as much because she hasn’t heard of employers using it.
“Have a more professional email address; that’s a big thing,” Fahle said. “If you want to keep your old one, that’s fine, but you should use a more professional one when looking for work.”
Adecco provides a network training class for job seekers to learn what should and should not be shared on Facebook, Fahle said.
“I’d say when looking for work, keep it generic,” Fahle said. “Don’t post things with drinking and craziness.”
