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Purpose
To establish guidelines for the use of social networking and social media sites
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Policy Statement
Policy Statement
The City’s is committed to developing and maintaining a Social Media presence that:
a) is informative, welcoming, respectful, and inclusive;
b) aligns with the City’s vision and guiding principles;
c) supports the City’s image; and
d) is accessible, transparent, and accountable.
Policy Requirements
The City of St. John’s uses Social Media as a communication and engagement tool for information sharing and dialogue.
1 General Requirements
a) City Social Media content shall:
i. align with the City’s vision and guiding principles and not negatively impact on the City’s reputation; and
ii. be accurate, transparent, and accountable.
b) Use of Social Media shall support the City’s operational objectives.
c) Only authorized Employees shall create, publicize, and manage a City Social Media account.
d) All City Social Media sites shall conform with the appropriate and applicable City corporate branding and standards.
e) All City Social Media sites shall contain a link to the Social Media Terms of Use.
f) All Social Media activities shall be in accordance with the City’s Social Media Handbook.
g) The City reserves the right to restrict or remove any content that is deemed to be, in its sole discretion, in violation of this policy, or any applicable legislation.
2 Authorized Content Providers
a) Authorized Content Providers shall only communicate authorized information.
3 Employee Use of Social Media
a) An Employee shall not represent the City of St. John’s on any Social Media unless authorized to do so.
b) All Employees shall use sound judgment when posting to their personal Social Media and all postings should be consistent with their employment obligations, including, but not limited to those obligations under the St. John’s Code of Ethics By-law and City policies.
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Application
This policy applies to all Employees, excluding St. John’s Transportation Commission (Metrobus) employees.
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Responsibilities
1 The Manager, Marketing and Office Services shall be responsible for:
a) managing the overall implementation of this policy;
b) approving an annual Social Media Strategy; and
c) approving Authorized Content Providers.
2 Marketing and Communications Employees shall be responsible for:
a) supporting departments with their Social Media requirements, as required; and
b) monitoring compliance with the policy.
3 Authorized Content Providers shall be responsible for:
a) complying with this policy in their use of Social Media.
4 All Employees shall be responsible for:
a) complying with this policy in their use of Social Media.
5 Department Heads shall be responsible for:
a) advising their Employees to comply with the policy and related documents.
6 Department of Human Resources shall be responsible for:
a) reviewing the Social Media Policy with Employees during orientation and as required.
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Definition
“Authorized Content Provider” means an Employee recognized by the Marketing and Communications Division to post and/or modify content on a Social Media site.
“Department Head” means all Deputy City Managers (DCMs) and the City Manager or their designate.
“Employee” means any person employed by the City of St. John’s as a permanent, term, part-time, casual, contract, seasonal, temporary, or student worker.
“Social Media” means publicly-accessible digital communications, including but not limited to, social networks, video and photo file sharing, social bookmarking, blogs, micro-blogs, podcasting, or wikis; including freely accessible online tools used to produce, post, and interact using text, images, video, and/or audio to communicate, share, collaborate, or network.
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References/Appendix
01-04-01 Records Management Policy
01-04-02 Privacy Management Policy
03-05-04 Employees Publicly Criticizing the City
03-05-19 Respectful Workplace Policy
Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act, 2015
City of St. John’s Code of Ethics By-law
Social Media Handbook
Social Media Terms of Use
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Monitoring and Contravention
The Marketing and Communications Division shall monitor the application of this policy.
Any contravention of this policy and/or associated documents shall be reported to the Department of Finance and Administration (including Human Resources Division), the Office of the City Solicitor, and/or the City Manager, for further investigation and appropriate action, which may include, but is not limited to, legal action and discipline, including dismissal.
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Approvals
• Policy Sponsor: Manager, Marketing and Office Services
• Policy Writer: Manager, Marketing and Office Services;
Policy Analyst
• Date of Approval from
o Corporate Policy Committee: 2020-11-19
o Senior Executive Committee: 2022-04-01
o Committee of the Whole: 2022-04-06
• Date of Approval from Council: 2022-04-18
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Review Period
Every four years
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