Skip to main content

Facebook designed a tool that would let employers blacklist words like 'unionize' in employee chats (FB)

* Facebook reportedly touted the ability for employers using Workplace, its internal messaging product for business, to suppress employees' discussions of unionization. * The company gave an internal presentation debuting new features Wednesday, including the ability for employers to censor certain topics being discussed by employees. One example the presentation gave was the word "unionize," The Intercept reported. * A Facebook spokesperson told Business Insider that the "unionization" example was "poorly chosen and should never have been used," and that the company has paused development on that Workplace feature. * Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. Facebook designed a built-in feature for Workplace, the company's office-communication product meant to compete with Slack and Microsoft Teams, that would let employers suppress workers' discussions of unionization. At an internal presentation about Workplace on Wednesday, Facebook debuted a new feature for the product that lets employers exert "content control" over certain topics trending among employees, The Intercept's Lee Fang reported. The presentation included the word "unionize" as an example of a term employers might want to suppress. The internal presentation was reportedly taken offline the next day. A Facebook spokesperson told Business Insider that the company has paused development on the Workplace feature in question. "While these kinds of content moderation tools are useful for companies, this example was poorly chosen and should never have been used. The feature was only in early development and we've pulled any plans to roll it out while we think through next steps," the spokesperson said. The internal presentation at Facebook comes as employers are increasingly turning to high-tech solutions to suppress unionization efforts. Business Insider reported in April that Amazon-owned Whole Foods used a heat-map tool to track stores at the highest "risk" for unionization. Before that, Walmart hired intelligence-gathering service Lockheed Martin to monitor unionization efforts at its stores across the US. Facebook has been rapidly beefing up Workplace since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic to win over offices that are working remotely. Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at aholmes@businessinsider.com, message him on Twitter @aaronpholmes, or send him a secure message through Signal at (706) 347-1880. You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Why electric planes haven't taken off yet
https://bit.ly/3hlkLmL

Popular posts from this blog

PayPal parts with top advertising executive after shifting its marketing strategy during the pandemic

* PayPal's chief creative officer Steve Simpson, its top advertising executive, left the company after about a year. * The move came after PayPal shifted its marketing strategy during the coronavirus pandemic, placing less emphasis on the brand and more on catering to small businesses, said a source with direct knowledge of the marketing operation. * Simpson's departure followed that of CMO and former Apple executive Allison Johnson in May. Both "decided to leave PayPal" as the company streamlines its global marketing functions, according to a PayPal spokeswoman. * Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. PayPal's highest-ranking ad executive Steve Simpson left earlier this month after just over a year as part of a restructuring of its global marketing business. Simpson, who was chief creative officer, was hired to make high-minded ad campaigns to help PayPal stand out from competitors like Square, Stripe, and Apple Pay. But this strategy chan...

TikTok confirms it will sue the US government, alleging Trump failed to provide 'due process' before issuing ban

* TikTok confirmed Saturday that the company planned to sue the US government over President Donald Trump's executive orders targeting the popular app. * A company spokesperson said TikTok experienced "a lack of due process as the administration paid no attention to facts and tried to insert itself into negotiations between private businesses." * TikTok, which has surged in popularity over the past year, was known as Musical.ly until it was purchased by the Chinese company ByteDance in 2017 and renamed. * The president on August 6 and August 14 signed executive orders targeting TikTok.  * Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. TikTok on Saturday announced it plans to sue the US government over President Donald Trump's executive orders pertaining to its ownership, arguing the company was deprived of its due process rights. The president, who began targeting TikTok in July, issued an executive order August 6 making it illegal for American compani...

A pair of former champions headline UFC Fight Night: Munhoz vs Edgar — How to watch

  * UFC Fight Night: Munhoz vs Edgar will be streamed live on August 22, exclusively through the ESPN+ streaming service. * In the main event, former UFC Lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will make his debut in the bantamweight division in the 27th match of his UFC career. * With 13 career wins by knockout or submission, 5th ranked Pedro Munhoz is the former Resurrection Fighting Alliance bantamweight champion and one of the UFC division's most formidible fighters. * Prelims are set to start at 6 p.m. ET and the main card is scheduled to begin at 8:30 p.m. ET. * Every UFC Fight Night event is included with an ESPN+ subscription, which costs $6.99 per month or $49.99 per year. Product Card Module: Monthly Subscription Service Card size: small Former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will make his bantamweight debut against #5 ranked Pedro Munhoz in the main event of UFC Fight Night: Munhoz vs Edgar on August 22. Munhoz has dominated opponents in his 18 career wins...