Lawful dismissal of those who offend their company on Facebook

The Court of Cassation, with judgement No. 10280 published on 27 April 2018 reviewed the case of a dismissal ordered to an employee who had published disparaging statements and negative comments against her employer and its representatives on her Facebook page. In particular, the Supreme Court, in confirming the decision of the judges in charge of the case, noted first of all that the conduct of the worker – although not intending to relate it to the volitional act of malice – may certainly fall within a case of serious negligence and, therefore, such as to cause damage to the bond of trust between the parties. Similarly, regarding the objective element, the Supreme Court has pointed out that “spreading a slanderous message through Facebook leads to a potential situation of defamation, for its potential ability to reach an indefinite number of people”, thus proving to be capable, also in this respect, of breaking the bond of trust at the basis of any standard employment relationship. In essence, this ruling confirms the case law trend that deems lawful those disciplinary dismissals ordered for the improper use of social networks.