Federal Regulators Say It's OK to Diss the Boss on Social Media -- Sometimes

Many workplace policies call on employees not to disparage the company or one’s co-workers on social media, but the National Labor Relations Board says such “water cooler” talk is protected.

A New York Times article reports that in recent months, the board has ordered the reinstatement of workers fired for their posts on social networks and pushed companies nationwide including General Motors, Target and Costco to rewrite their social media rules.

The decisions suggest that broad social media restrictions limit employees’ rights to communicate with one another about work conditions and wages and are therefore illegal.