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Kincaid employee says proposed social-media contract 'silences' staff; village attorney defends policy
Summary
A longtime Kincaid employee urged trustees to discuss and formally vote on a proposed employee social-media contract, calling parts inconsistent with the handbook and possibly unconstitutional; Village attorney Rahar said the form is an IML-derived policy and will be reviewed for handbook inclusion.
Christian Vacker, a longtime village employee, told the committee he objects to a proposed employee social-media contract that he said would silence staff and was never voted into the handbook. "The board has essentially told me that my voice is no longer important," Vacker said, and asked the board to discuss the contract publicly and vote on it at a board meeting.
Village Attorney Rahar told the committee he reviewed the form at Mayor Robert Morris's direction and said it is a generic document commonly used by municipalities and does not ban personal social media use. "We aren't saying you can't use Facebook, Twitter, X, Snapchat and whatever else...we are just saying be smart with it, use common sense," Rahar said. Rahar agreed to review whether the policy should be incorporated into the employee handbook and to clarify the employee-usage language at the mayor's request. Trustee Nelson said the handbook needs a broader revamp and thanked Vacker for raising concerns.
The committee did not take formal action on the draft policy at the meeting; Rahar said he would examine language and handbook placement and report back to the mayor for next steps.
