Get Fired after Being Caught Chatting during Workday, is It Reasonable?

Chatting during office hour is strictly prohibited. That because it really hampers your load of things to do. Its addicting when you chat. Its like there's no end in chatting because its fun having a conversation over the internet. You can get to know different kinds of people, your interests, lovelife everything under the sun to talk about. So I think you can be given a suspension for a day or two but not dissmisal for i believe it doesn't fall under grave offense.

In one of my past employment, we used MSN, Skype or Yahoo Messenger to get connected with the suppliers, agents or even the clients. However, there were times when we did use those communication tools for personal usage. Actually, it depends so much on the employees. To me, I have my limitations so that I would not get distracted from my day-to-day job, but I have noticed one of my ex-workmates would always chat in between his work and as a result he missed some of the important information in his paperwork because lack of concentration. I think he was given a warning letter, but not because he was caught chatting. It was because of his negligence. I don't think it's appropriate for the company to check on the chat record because they should respect the employees' privacy. It is better to ban the whole thing than to invade on others' personal activities.

When you're "playing" on the internet during working hours, and, thus, cheating your employer out of time that belongs to them, you shouldn't be surprised if you're fired or at least have pay deducted from your paycheck. However, I think you should be warned first and if you continue you have no one to blame but yourself if you're fired.

I think that it is fair to dismiss employees who chat during the workday (unless the "chat" is work related). You go there to work, not to socialize. Socializing should be done on your own time. As for the company recording chat records, that's a little iffy. One does expect a right to privacy, but then again, the company owns the computer and it is on their property. So, I guess that I do think that it is reasonable that the company reserves the right to monitor what the employees are doing on their computers.

I never do that when I am working. For me, it is a big distraction. But I had this co-worker who was caught by our supervisor opening a website unrelated to work. She was then fired right away. For me, she really made a big mistake because doing things unrelated to work while still on duty is wrong and very unprofessional. But, the firing thing is sort of too much. Maybe, a first warning would be ok but right away firing a personnel for that one mistake is just too much.

Well, there's something called proxy that companies use to ban users from accessing many websites or even being able to log to chat programs. My company did, so me and my workmates would always think of a way to avoid it. It's true that it can distract you from your work, but not having any distraction is bad for workers too, as the more bored or tired you get, the worse you work.

if you're constantly doing it instead of your work,yes,it's reasonable. once in a while,no. i know i wouldn't want to pay somebody goofing off all day. they should at least get a warning though first.

I think that if you work for a company you should not chat during the day online unless it is okay to do so or unless your on lunch. Otherwise, if you do chat I think the amount of chatting you do versus the amount of work you get done should be put into consideration. That is to say, have the boss question whether it's worth it or "right" to fire a person just because they chat, is it going to hurt the company in the long run? If the person is still doing a good amount of work then it shouldn't matter as long as it doesn't distract the person's work ethic.

I little or at break time i would feel is ok. But i feel it would probably be best to just do your person chatting at home instead of the work place. If i were the employer i would not like to see someone using the time i pay them to work to be chatting away online or on the phone. If someone tries to connect to them they should just tell them they are working and will contact them after hours.

I personally don't think that it's right for employees to go on chat rooms and messengers during their working hours. The computer, electricity and bandwidth that they're using up by doing these things at work do NOT belong to them, they belong to the organisation, these aren't free resources for people to take advantage of, they're resources provided so people can do and finish their jobs more easily. They are owned and FINANCED by the corp, since they're spending their own money on it I see they have all the right to monitor who uses their resources in ways that the organisation's rules and guidelines prohibit. You're going to work to WORK, not play and chitchat with your friends!

every company has their own rules & regulations. if we don't abide by their rules, any action taken to us is surely reasonable (from the company's point of view). but of course, from our point of view we might say that we only chat when we are free (not affecting work), or that we chat just to relax (in order to work more effectively).

i thnik it depends on the company. however, if this is clearly a part of the employee orientation then nobody has any right to contradict it. court-wise it still isn't a square win as employees are hired by the company to work for them and if they're chatting during working hours then that's not working .

If the person is fired because they were caught chatting during workday it must be against the company policy. That person should know this so it is not unreasonable for them to be fired. Chatting with friends on the internet should be done at home not at work.

Hi, Your point is very important. I think any one who is caught chating during office time un-necessarily, must be fired. It is just like talking directly to some one in office to waste time. It is totally unfair.

sorry to burst your bubble but it's a yes. it takes up much of your working time which the company is paying you do work. It is called un-productivity, where you are not contributing anything to the company by chatting with someone or just simply browsing through the net while you are in your workplace, unless permitted or your tasks has been done.Any company has all the rights to fire an employee breaking office rules and protocols, that means you are not a team player and a liability to the company to make money for them. It's the employee who does these things who are unfair. Unless, you own the company then that is a different story altogether.

We're discussing the situation in my college class right now. While I can understand the employee's viewpoint of being able to chat with others, I totally understand the boss's viewpoint. First, if you are working in an environment that you need to have security about various things, such as products in the planning stages or other company secrets, the boss has a right to cover his fanny! Also, many people will chat and lose track of time and end up using a lot of company time "chatting". It results in a lot of wasted money, and higher costs for the consumers. Then, as what happened at my school, there is the possibility of viruses and spyware and worms. Someone at my school turned off the virus and spyware programs to play a game. The result was that someone hacked into the computer system and used it to spread spam world wide. Many of the work places now have agreements that employees sign stating that the use of the computers to chat, shop or do other activities can result in termination. We have entered into another area of controversy between employers and employees. As a business owner, I would want the security of knowing that if I have an employee that is misusing the computer that I could terminate their employment. To me it would be like someone signing out a company car for a business trip and instead of using it for the business trip they took it for a family vacation. It isn't deductible income tax wise, and the same can be said for the misuse of the computer for chat...

I don't think anyone should be allowed to chat at work unless your boss says its okay. And if the person chats online then they get caught they should be warned not to do it again. But if they keep on doing it then they are taking the chances of getting fired from there job.

I don't know of any boss who hires an employee and says, "By the way, you can use my resources freely for your own personal gratification." I personally think all games, etc., should be blocked from work sites. And if someone is caught playing them, or using messaging to chat on the company's time (even if they are having lunch at your desk), they should be dismissed immediately. It sets a bad precedent for all other employees. The computers at your job are for work purposes. The personal time you spend on them takes profit away from the company and eventually, if it gets serious enough, it takes raises in pay away from all the employees. Since the computer DOES belong to the company, the boss should have every right to check any information on it, because it is company property. If you want to message someone, wait for breaks or lunch, get away from your desk and use your own telephone or your own laptop or notebook. If the laptop or notebook is supplied by the company, you do not have the right to use it for personal items. At what point did we begin thinking the job we interviewed for and prayed to get should be used for any reason other than company business? It is selfish, childish and completely irresponsible to do so. The 50% for it should either let someone else who have the company and their fellow employees best interests at heart have their jobs or forget about even trying for a job. They are not serious about commitment to the workplace.

If the company impose their own rule in that particular case. I believe employee should follow that rule. Chatting while at work is against the policy of the company therefor I would say that firing an employee get caught on chatting while working is reasonable. If the employee is caught once. Company should first warn that employee for not doing it again but if that violation is repeatedly done. I think that the time to fire out the employee without additional notice...

Well, I tend to think of it in simple terms. Whose computer is it? Whose internet service is it? Whose labor hour is it? The facts are that its is their computer, with their internet, and they are paying you for that hour of labor, and likely paying for the building chairs desks, electricity and everything else that you are using. Given that, it's a pretty fair bet they have the right to determine the rules at their work place. My father had this nifty saying "As long as you live under my roof, eating my food, riding in my car, waring my clothes, you will follow my rules." And he was right. Guess what... same difference at work. Imagine if you hired a lawn care service to mow your lawn. You tell them exactly what you want them to do, and instead they mow down your flowers and run over a small tree you just planted. Would you pay them? But they did cut your lawn! Well yeah but they didn't do it right. Well what if they show up at 6 PM, and talk on their phone for hours, and are still cutting your lawn at 11 PM at night. Then they demand $100 more because they spent so much time on it. But they did it right! Are you going to pay them? Of course not. Why would you pay an extra $100 because they dragged out a 1 hour lawn mowing by being distracted by a cell phone? So if you make your kids obey your rules in your home, and you make people you hire obey your rules when you are paying them, why shouldn't someone who hires you, and pays you, be able to make the rules you follow? Now is it reasonable? Depends on the job and company. If the company is doing really well, then perhaps not. If the company is doing poorly, of course it is. It also depends on the job. If you answer phones, and you don't have a caller at the time, there's nothing you can do, so chatting is fine. If you are filing payroll, which must be done within a time frame, then yes it's very reasonable to get rid of someone wasting time when important works needs done.