Just over 41.2% of survey respondents said they were sure the First Amendment would protect them from getting fired due to a social media post, while 30.4% said they were not sure, according to HubShout’s 2016 Social Media Conduct Survey. While the First Amendment offers protection from government “interference or constraint,” that protection does not necessarily extend to employers unless it is connected to work or work-relate activities.
“For example, you could post to fellow employees, ‘We’ve got to get management to do something about the stupid copy machines we are all forced to use,’” Yahoo Tech reports. “That is fine and protected. But post, ‘I can’t stand the stupid copy machine I have to use,’ and you are putting your job in jeopardy.”