Blogger Wins Compensation
Here's a story of a British secretary in Paris who was sacked for blogging on the job.
She won a compensation claim case against the Paris office of British accounting firm Dixon Wilson.
AFP has the story:
Catherine Sanderson, 34, had been blogging under the pseudonym of "La Petite Anglaise" and had built up a sizeable international following with many people reading her diary-style accounts about work, relationships and the travails of single-motherhood.
On Thursday (March 29), a Paris labour tribunal, or "prud'hommes", ruled that the firm pay Catherine 44,000 euros (USD58,800), tantamount to a year's salary, following her dismissal last April for alleged misconduct.
"I'm so relieved that good sense has prevailed," Catherine told AFP on Friday.
The reasons behind the tribunal's decision in the case, one of the first of its kind in France, will be released in two weeks.
Catherine said managers had discovered from reading the blog that on two occasions she had lied about having nanny problems to take the afternoon off. They also objected to her using the computer in office hours to write the blog.
"I always felt that my dismissal was an unnecessarily harsh sanction and clearly the prud'hommes shared my view,"she said.
Dixon Wilson, which offers tax and financial advice to private clients in Britain and France, refused to comment on Friday. The company has a month to appeal.
If Catherine were in Malaysia, would her case reach the courts?
She lied to her bosses, and then told the truth in her blog. She had been blogging on company time. Got the sack, went to court for compensation, and won.
A point to note here is that managers in her company had been reading her blog. That's how they discovered that she had lied about her "nanny" excuse.
How do you like that?
11 comments:
looks like in france too bloggers are unemployed! and mostly women. and they are all liars.
except that their courts think her bosses are worse.
In Malaysia, she would have lost the case. Our labour laws are more stringent (lesser human rights). They had the European Convention for Human Rights Act (ECHR)
anonymous 1:47 AM: looks like in france too bloggers are unemployed! and mostly women. and they are all liars.
Hahahaha.. looks like it's pandemic!
Hi Nuraina,
Here's a blogtoid for you and other Jln Sudin visitors.
Language being my thing, I find it particularly interesting that Petite Anglaise referred to her firing as "my doocing" & "got dooced".
This may not be news to seasoned bloggers and blog-trawlers, but 'dooce' (http://www.dooce.com/) is the witty, hilarious and immensely popular blogsite of Heather B. Armstrong, who is probably the first known blogger (or blogger known) to have lost her job due to blogging.
Hence...
dooced': ~~[adj] having lost job due to being caught blogging. ~~[noun] doocing
Alors, quel dommage pour Mlle Armstrong et Mlle Petite Anglaise! Mais voilà, la naissance d'un nouveau mot pour l'argot d'Internet! :D
Dearest Ms NAS,
The Politicians and the likes of Rectally Eminence Rehman Rashid (RRR ) are accusing bloggers as liars,rumor mongers,racist,failed writers and politician ,unemployed housewives,people who cant tell the different fr one end and the other and many many more to come.
Somehow it escape them that this is the Rakyat voice airing their despair,frustration,disbelieve and getting fedup for being treated like a fool.
All we were seeking for are the transparency ,end of corruptions and ultimately the truth.
I believe thats is the one that chills them to their bone...afraid that the truth being told and the charade that they put up being dismantled one by one.The likes of Lion ,Dorothy,Scarecrow and Tinman finding out the Wizards of Oz is not a wizard that they claimed to be,but a selfish,corrupt and imcompetent leaders.
"The truth is incontrovertible, malice may attack it, ignorance may deride it, but in the end; there it is.”
Sir Winston Churchill.
Mr Politician Sir,
"I love you, and because I love you, I would sooner have you hate me for telling you the truth than adore me for telling you lies.”
Pietro Aretino
TQ
No way in bolehland sis.
Mees Nas,
You brought up something important here. Bloggers need to blog on their home computers, or anywhere outside their office environment to prevent possible "liability" issues. I work for a multi-national, and trust me, they DO read all your emails, including private ones.. What more blogs..Bahaya,bahaya...
I think a lot of us bloggers actually do blog in the office, be it during work hours or lunch time.
But blogging about work can get you into a lot of trouble because you disclose a lot of classified information. I would never dream of blogging about work.
I think it's wrong.
From my perpective, this is a case involving a multitude of moral dilemmas. It's probably a bit too harsh giving her the sack without first cautioning her. That said, I also believe it's rather unethical of her blogging on company time/computer and lying to get time off.
It sure appears to me that she was somehow under-utilised if she could consistently find time blogging during office hours. Her employer should have nipped the "slack" in the bud. But then again, they would be labelled "slave-drivers" if they did. There are moral dilemmas every which way one turns. I, for one, would be interested to read about the reasons behind the tribunal's decision in the case.
I wonder whether her managers read her blog during office hours, hmmm... I suppose even if they did, they could easily justify it by claiming that catching an office "bludger" is "official" business.
Tante ena
I think in this case she is wrong.
Imho blogging on office time is not right...just plain unethical.
I agree with Jay Han,
This case is not about lying. It's about blogging while you are suppose to be working.
What if your toddler met with an accident in the house becoz your maid decides to become a blogger when you are not around.
The line has to be drawn somewhere.
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