Employers Give Video a Thumbs Down

September 25, 2006

When shots of offices turn up online, heads can roll

Employees are using technology to make videos of the workplace and post them on well-trafficked Internet sites, creating new legal worries and public relations issues for companies.
In some cases, the videos have also created welcome publicity.

But there is growing concern that company trade secrets or embarrassing employee behavior could be released online to an audience of millions.

• Defense contractor Lockheed Martin found itself the subject of a video on YouTube, a site that lets users post amateur videos. One of its engineers, Michael De Kort, posted a video in which he claimed some patrol boats the company had delivered were defective.

He says he posted the video after getting no response to his concerns from the company.
After the video went up, De Kort, of Monument, Colo., says, he was let go.

He is now seeking to create a new online website where employee whistle-blowers can post similar videos.
Lockheed officials says the company has no policies covering what employees do on their own time, but did say they can't disclose proprietary information without approval and must use work-provided technology for business reasons.

“Mr. De Kort no longer works for the corporation, and we have thoroughly investigated his allegations on several occasions and found them to be without merit,” spokesman Troy Scully says.

“Some people thought it was sour grapes,” says De Kort, 41, who used a $50 Web camera to record his 10-minute speech where he held up company documents. “As far as getting another job, this is not going to help me. People may admire this, but they're not going to hire me.”


• On the other hand, at New York-based public relations firm Cubitt Jacobs & Prosek, associate vice president Wilson Cleveland put together a spoof of his company operations and posted it on YouTube.

The video, which was made with full support of supervisors, has turned into a recruiting tool as viewers find it online and then want to learn more about the firm.

But the downsides alarm some employers. Companies such as DaimlerChrysler and Texas Instruments have expanded their Internet policies to ban or limit the use of cellphones that capture images.

“Now, today, everyone can have a James Bond camera. Like blogging before it, online photo and video sites beg for corporations to produce new standards and rules that are clearly communicated to all employees,” says David Carpe, founder of Boston-based consulting firm Clew. “It's a risk.”

Employees also run a personal risk if they post untrue information that could leave them vulnerable to defamation lawsuits. Videos can also give information to competitors or create a public relations crisis.

The concern is mounting with the growing popularity of image-ready phones, Web cameras and online sites that allow users to post video.

“Technology is changing so rapidly that employers need to be informed and able to monitor the global Internet,” says Sara Begley, an employment lawyer in Philadelphia.

Watching videos using technology is becoming commonplace. Among those who use laptops for downloading or streaming video, 77% watch streaming video, according to a 2006 survey by Menlo Park, Calif.-based Knowledge Networks.

“If you're using the resources owned by the employer, it's improper to use that for any personal use,” says Peter Vogel, a Dallas-based employment lawyer. “What's going to happen is employers are going to say, ‘Are you using any business resources?' If you are, they will terminate you.”