Don’t Dob Me In, Mate: A Social Media Policy in Australia Outrages A Union

In Australia, a new policy has been imposed on the staff of the government ‘s Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. The policy sets guidelines on the use of Twitter, Facebook and other websites, encouraging staff to “dob in” colleagues who criticize the government. The term is widely used in Australia to mean inform on, or snitch. In response, the Community and Public Sector Union lodged a complaint with the Commonwealth Human Rights Commission, roughly the equivalent of the National Labor Relations Board. “Encouraging people to dob in a workmate is a new and nasty feature, and one that we think is entirely unnecessary,” said the CPSU national secretary, Nadine Flood. The head of the Commission strongly criticized the policy, calling it “extraordinary,” and noted that public servants have “a private life and a right to their own views.” Nonetheless, she said, she would not “have a battle over it.”