We’ve all had that annoying co-worker whose friend request we’ve regretted accepting, but you might want to think twice before unfriending said individual in Australia, as officials there ruled recently that kicking someone to the social media curb may be considered bullying.
According to CNET and Engadget, the Australian Fair Work Commission had been hearing the case of Rachael Roberts, an employee of a real estate agency in Tasmania who accused coworker Lisa Bird and Lisa’s husband James (the agency owner) of trying to belittle and humiliate her.
Roberts presented a total of nearly 20 incidents from her three year stint with the company, such as being forbidden from changing the office air conditioning temperature settings. She also noted that Bird unfriended her on Facebook, an act which the commission said constituted evidence of the alleged bullying (along with other instances of name-calling and harassment).
Unfriending Roberts, the FWC declared, helped demonstrate the “lack of emotional maturity” of Bird and her husband when it came to their interactions with Roberts. Ultimately, the victim was given an order to stop the bullying, which she said has caused anxiety, depression, and even sleep disorders – granted at least in part because she was unfriended on Facebook.
Act of unfriending ‘indicative of unreasonable behavior’
As an Australian news outlet noted, however, there were multiple other alleged incidents of workplace harassment that took place, including one in which Bird referred to Roberts as a “naughty little schoolgirl running to the teacher” after she called Bird’s husband to find out why there weren’t any of her listed properties displayed in the front window of the agency.
Following one meeting that left her in a “very distressed state,” Roberts thought to check social media to find out if Bird commented about the incident, only to discover that Bird had already unfriended her. That action, FWC deputy president Nicole Wells ruled, demonstrated “a lack of emotional maturity and is indicative of unreasonable behavior” in the workplace.
While Engadget said it is “doubtful that you’ll see cases that lean primarily on unfriending as evidence,” they added that in light of this verdict, “the act may prove more important in legal disputes down the road” as it is often “a strong sign that one person has fallen out of favor with another.” If co-workers seem more reluctant to touch base through social media in the future, it may be because they’re worried that doing so could affect them down the line.
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Feature Image: Thinkstock
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