Dooced is a legal term that describes a situation where an individual has been wrongfully discharged from a job. It is a combination of the words “fired” and “sued.” It was first coined in 2006 when a woman was fired from a tech company after she started a blog to discuss her frustrations with the job.
What Constitutes Doocing?
Doocing can occur when an employer terminates an employee’s job based on something the employee said or posted online, such as a blog entry, photo, or social media post. This could include criticism of a company’s policies or grievances against management that becomes public. The employee has the right to sue the employer for wrongful termination.
Doocing can also occur if an employer takes an employee’s online comments out of context in order to make it look like the employee is speaking on behalf of the company. For example, if an employee posts an opinion on social media and their employer then uses the post to represent their own views without the employee’s consent, this could potentially be dooced.
Doocing in the Digital Age
The prevalence of social media and various online platforms means that employers are constantly monitoring what their employees are saying and can be extra cautious with what they post. Even comments that may seem harmless can have serious consequences, depending on the context. As such, it’s important for employees to remain mindful of what they say or post online as it could potentially lead to doocing.
Social media outlets also give employees a platform to publicly share their grievances if they do in fact get dooced. This can put pressure on employers to respond or face a public backlash, which can be a powerful incentive for employers to resolve doocing cases instead of dragging them out.
Conclusion
Doocing is a situation where an employee is wrongfully discharged from a job due to something they said or posted online. In the digital age, employers are increasingly aware of their employees’ online presence and can be extra careful with what they share. As such, it’s important for employees to remain mindful of their digital footprint, and if they do get dooced, they have the right to take legal action.