Intent

HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty strives to maintain a positive image in the community, and has adopted this policy to ensure that our staff members, management, Independent Contractors, Realtors® and our sub-contractors (herein collectively referred to as Employees) are aware of their responsibility to maintain a positive image as a representative of our organization. HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty Employees and volunteers who maintain personal and business social media pages (for example, Facebook, LinkedIn, personal blog, Twitter, Instagram) are expected to comply with the guidelines set out within this policy.

This document is designed to provide all HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty’s Employees with guidelines regarding the appropriate use of the company’s social media accounts including but not limited to; Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and the company’s blog, and this document should be referenced as a guideline as it refers to social media of any nature, whether personal, business or corporate.

Employees continue to act as representatives of this organization outside of regular business hours, and should conduct themselves appropriately. It should be noted that the general public does not differentiate your conduct on personal social media platforms from business social media platforms, in fact they are all viewed as a reflection of you and our company.

Definitions

Social media: “Forms of electronic communication through which users create online communities to share information, ideas, personal messages and other content” (Merriam-Webster Dictionary). These include but are not limited to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, and Instagram.

General Guidelines

Company Employees who maintain personal social media pages or accounts must comply with the following guidelines as they relate to their association with HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty. Employees will be held accountable for what they write or post on social media or webpages.

Defamatory comments or unprofessional or disparaging remarks made about the organization, its Employees, customers, vendors, or competitors may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.

Employees should follow the guidelines below when making posts or comments on any social media site whether public or private.

Employees shall conduct themselves professionally both on and off duty. Where an employee publicly associates with the company, all materials associated with their page may reflect on the company. Please be advised that inappropriate comments, photographs, links, and so on should be avoided.

Posts involving the following will not be tolerated and will subject the individual to discipline:

• • Proprietary and confidential company information;
  • Discriminatory statements or comments of a harassing or bullying nature regarding co-workers, competitors, management, customers, or vendors;
  • Defamatory statements regarding the company, its Employees, customers, competitors, or vendors.
  • Discussions regarding competitors’ products, or practices that defame or that are in violation of the Competition Act.
  • Disparaging remarks, or negative inappropriate language or posts.
  • Remember social media is not a substitute for customer service.

Protecting Our Business

• In the event that a HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty Employee, discovers any group(s) that users have formed to discuss the company, its products, or services, Employees are requested to bring them to the attention of the Broker of Record.
• Violation of copyrights, images or videos created by someone else without property attribution and /or authorization.
• Employees are required to relay important issues relating to social media to management as soon as possible.
• Employees should always carefully consider what to post in response to an argumentative or accusatory post. If Employees have any questions regarding how to respond to a particular post, Employees should discuss the issue with management prior to posting.
• Always adopt a positive attitude when responding to comments on the company’s pages or applications, or comments about the company in general.
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Employees and the Brokerage are governed by legislation including but not limited to; The Real Estate and Business Brokers Act (REBBA 2002) Regulations & Code of Ethics, The Competition Act, The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA)and The Toronto Real Estate Board, Rules and Regulations and should govern themselves accordingly.

HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty Employees are prohibited from speaking on behalf of the organization, releasing confidential information, releasing unauthorized news, or communicating as a representative of the organization.

Use of personal social media may not conflict with any existing policies of HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty whatsoever.

Staff and Company Property

Staff are prohibited from using social media during regular working hours; Staff should limit use to official breaks (for example, eating periods). As Internet access at HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty is monitored, please be advised that excessive use of social media for personal reasons is a misappropriation of company time and resources, and may be subject to disciplinary action.

HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty strictly prohibits the use of company-owned computer resources for illegal downloading or uploading of copyrighted materials without express written permission and authorization from the copyright holder.

This policy is not intended to interfere with the private lives of our Employees, or impinge on their freedom of speech. This policy is designed to ensure that the image and branding of HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty are maintained, as well as the health and safety of Employees.

Employees should abide by these guidelines whether they mention the company by name or not. Even if the name is not mentioned in a post, it is possible a link can be made back to HOMELIFE/PARAMOUNT Realty which can negatively affect the company’s reputation. Where a link can be made between a negative or defamatory post and the company, even if not named directly, the employee may be subject to disciplinary action.

Any employee who fails to follow the guidelines set out in this policy may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment.

Employees should also be aware that many customers and persons present on company property frequently use mobile phones and other devices to take photographs or make recordings.

Employees should always represent the company positively and professionally so negative images are not posted on social media sites of customers or visitors.

Employees who are photographed or recorded acting inappropriately or unprofessionally may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination or employment.