An employee is off on long-term ‘sick’ and you hear on the grapevine that the employee has posted on Facebook that they are working in a different job. How do you handle this - what action can you take?

You should investigate this situation as a potential disciplinary matter with the potential allegation(s) being an intention to defraud and/or deception. This will involve investigating the source of the information to establish its accuracy, considering potential data protection issues, reviewing the employee’s contract of employment for applicable clauses and any other relevant documentation or policy and arranging an investigation meeting with the employee concerned. In view of the increasing phenomenon of social media, it is advisable to have a policy in place to deal with social media issues; if there is one, this should be reviewed carefully. Depending on the outcome of the