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August 20, 2009 16:02
by Claire

Facebook's great, it can get you fired from jobs you hold (as the Internet found out last week as a screengrab wound its way around the internet). Now for future employees it's not just having a swanky portfolio that's important, it's having a clean Facebook too. Unsurprising, but new research has brought us interesting stats of what to avoid, and in short it's booze, drugs, boobs and rude language.
With nearly 1 in 2 companies checking out the Facebooks of job candidates (45%) the most important one to look out for is 'provocative photos' which leads to 53% of employees deciding against hiring you. And whilst 80s movies do paint the picture that alcohol and drugs are essential in the world of advertising, 44% of employees turned down candidates for this. Got that Uni students? Wipe the last 3 years of photos of your Facebook now.
If, as our Facebook friend above did, you're going to badmouth previous employees, 35% of employers are unlikely to enlist you.
Nice statistics but more interestingly, 14% of employees said that smiley faces and displays of emotion would also turn them off.
Employers don't sound particularly fun right now, and 11% have plans to implement social media screening in the soon-to-be future. On the up side, the research found that "18% of employers reported that they have found content on social networking sites that caused them to hire the candidate." Presumably in that case, the content was of job candidates standing fully-clothed in suits, expressionless and sober.
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