A Facebook rant targeting colleagues can be considered workplace bullying, the Fair Work Commission has ruled.
The full bench of the industrial watchdog has handed down its decision in what has emerged as a test case of the boundary between the workplace and cyberspace.
The commission has ruled that nasty personal comments on social media can constitute workplace bullying, even if neither the person who posted them nor their target were at work at the time.
"The relevant behaviour is not limited to the point in time when the comments are first posted on Facebook," the ruling says.
"The behaviour continues for as long as the comments remain on Facebook.
"It follows that the worker need not be 'at work' at the time the comments are posted. It would suffice if they accessed the comments later while 'at work'."
The ruling is a preliminary finding in an ongoing workplace bullying case, which centres on Facebook posts made by representatives of the Maritime Union of Australia and port operator DP World.
Three workers say some employees of DP World, and MUA officials, targeted them with insulting Facebook posts, and also claim they were threatened and excluded.
The case is ongoing and the ruling has been forwarded to the commission's deputy president for further consideration.
Federal bullying laws introduced in January enable victims to take their cases to the Fair Work Commission, which can hold mediations and make orders to prevent bullying.
Business body Ai Group said the ruling underscored the need for companies to have clear social media policies.
"Employers need to have policies in place that make it clear that posting inappropriate materials on social media sites about the company, managers or employees is unacceptable," a spokesman said on Friday.
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