Facebook post gets worker fired

[cboy4]

Maybe the Eagles should be renamed the Philadelphia Monarchs.

A Facebook post criticizing his employer, the Philadelphia Eagles, cost a stadium operations worker his job, according to a story in Monday's Philadelphia Inquirer.

Dan Leone, who the Inquirer said worked as a west gate chief, was unhappy the team let Brian Dawkins sign with the Denver Broncos in free agency. According to the newspaper, Leone posted the following on his Facebook page: "Dan is devastated about Dawkins signing with Denver ... Dam Eagles R Retarted!!"

Despite deleting the comment, Leone told the Inquirer the Eagles fired him by phone days later.

"I shouldn't have put it up there," Leone said, according to the Inquirer. "I was ticked off, and I let my emotions go, but I didn't offend any one person or target a specific individual. I was just upset that we lost such a great guy. Dawkins was one of my favorite players. I made a mistake."

Leone said he was shocked to lose his job of six years.

"I apologized for it," Leone said, according to the paper. "I apologized 20 million times. I never bad-mouthed the organization before. I made one mistake and they terminate me? And they couldn't even bring me into the office to talk to me? They had to do it over the phone? At least look me in the eye. To get done dirty like this, I can't believe it. I'm devastated."

The Eagles confirmed that Leone was a part-time staff member, but didn't comment further.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3965039&POLL397=400000000000000000000000000000000000000000

====================================================


Posted on Mon, Mar. 9, 2009

By John Gonzalez
Inquirer Columnist

It's not personal. It's business. That was the cold cop-out the Eagles used when Brian Dawkins signed with Denver. But you can't fully appreciate how heartless the organization actually is until you learn how it apparently treated Dan Leone.

For the last six years, Leone was one of the team's many game-day stadium employees at Lincoln Financial Field. For longer than that - for his entire life - he's been a fan of the franchise.

Leone grew up in the shadow of Veterans Stadium in a red-brick rowhouse near 10th and Oregon. As a kid, he'd walk over to see his beloved Birds play. The trip was never easy. Leone has a neurological disorder called transverse myelitis. Because it causes muscle fatigue and limits the range of motion in his limbs, Leone was sometimes forced to use crutches as a child.

When he grew older and the Linc opened, Leone crossed his fingers and filled out an application. The Eagles hired him almost immediately. He was ecstatic. Leone called his friends and family and gushed about going to work for the team he's always loved. He couldn't have been happier if he'd been named the Eagles' starting quarterback.

On game days, Leone served as the west gate chief. The gig required Leone to hustle to different areas of the stadium as needed. That was tough. His left leg is weaker than his right, and standing for too long gives him severe pain in his right knee and hip because that's where he shifts all his weight. While on duty, he sometimes needed a wheelchair to get around.

"They had me running all over the place like a nut, but I didn't care," Leone said. "I was so proud to work for them. It was my dream."

Last week, the Eagles fired Leone.

http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/eagles/40953267.html


MICHAEL BRYANT / Staff Photographer

Dan Leone, a former game-day employee of the Eagles, says
he was fired for comments he made on his Facebook page about
the team's failure to re-sign safety Brian Dawkins. :eyes:

[devilgrrl]

1. Oh brother!

:crazy:

[YOY]

2. He's a gameday employee.

What the fuck do they care? That's beyond intrusive to fire a guy like that...and not even a company/team man. A game day employee.

[tabasco]

3. So, some pissant, petty tyrant supervisor creates a PR nightmare for the team.

Way to go pissant supervisor!!

[NoPasaran]

4. He's out a job, but still has his BFF

That is one creepy picture.

[cboy4]

6. Nice comment to make about a disabled person.

:thumbsdown:

[cboy4]

5. What's next? Banning season ticket holders for comments

they make on Facebook or on sports radio? :wtf:

[varkam]

7. "done dirty" - that's exactly how I'd describe it.

Assholes.

[serrano2008]

8. Anybody else not buying this story?

I know, I know we're all supposed to fawn all over the victim here...but his story sounds a little off. We don't know the truth of why they fired this guy but I highly doubt it's because he wrote a little rant about the team on his Facebook page. Come on, look at that guy, nobody from the franchise is prowling around looking at this guy's Facebook page.

[Posteritatis]

9. Careful; you're underestimating the stupidity of employers

A lot of employers have ridiculously broad restrictions on what their employees may or may not say in public. That aside, there's places that'll fire people for having a blog/Facebook account/etc at all, never mind posting relevant comments on it.

[w4rma]

10. Why not? Noone from the franchise has said it is incorrect. I buy it. (nt)

[cboy4]

12. It's the perfect reason to get rid of a disabled person

who isn't as fast and efficient as someone else.

Nobody from the franchise is looking at Facebook pages, but someone could have very easily have notified the Eagles of the posting.

If the Eagles thought the story was untrue, the would have immediately gotten back to the reporter(s) to clear their name.

The fact that they declined to do so speaks volumes.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

15. Evidently Mr. Leone hasn't been "as fast and efficient as someone else"

for six years under their employ. Why the sudden firing?

Employers ARE checking Facebook pages -- why do you think the franchise would be any different?

[cboy4]

16. Yes I agree...companies are in infiltrating social networks

in disturbing fashion.

When I signed up for Twitter .. my frickin boss started talking to me.

I couldn't have been angrier.

[AndrewP]

19. Here's a crazy thought....maybe I'm outside the box here....

If you post something on a public forum, it can actually bite you in the ass. Case in point.

[cboy4]

21. Yea and how sad is that?

[WorseBeforeBetter]

23. You reap what you sow.

We don't know the full story. If this were Mr. Leone's first offense, you think they would have offered a warning or put him on probation. Perhaps there were other "issues" with Mr. Leone. They did employ him for 6 years, so there is some loyalty. There's a long waiting list for folks who want that job -- let's hire someone who doesn't post stupid shit to Facebook!

Hmm, start a Facebook group to get Mr. Leone reinstated. ;-)

[cboy4]

24. And we also don't know that he hasn't been a perfect

employee for six years.

This was a public humiliation for the team.

They can't fire sportswriters who criticize their personnel moves, but guess who they can fire?

He doesn't need a Facebook group, he needs a lawyer.

Hopefully one from the ACLU.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

26. Sportswriters aren't under their employ.

Or are they? Hmm.

[cboy4]

30. That's what I'm saying ... so the millionaire owner is taking it

out on the minimum wage stadium gate worker since they can't fire the sportwriters, who are far more damaging to the team's image.

In fact, sportswriters are protected by the National Football League.

A team cannot refuse to credential a writer.

That's my understanding.

Otherwise, the press boxes would be ghost towns, especially in Philadelphia were the press is tough on the local teams.

But it's fair game on an unknown disabled employee who holds a job for eight home games annually.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

33. It sounds more like the work of Catbert.

Do you think the millionaire owner keeps up with every gate worker that comes and goes?

[cboy4]

35. Obviously I don't think the owner monitors who is hired to

watch the gates at the stadium.

I think you get my point, however.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

20. Ha. I guess you can't deny the boss as a "Follower," eh?

S/he found you because you used your real name?

I don't really have a problem with companies "infiltrating" social networking sites. There's so much mind-boggling stupidity posted by many that it's a good way to weed out those with poor judgment. You know the ones I'm talking about: the young professional at X company who posted pics of himself bowing to the porcelain god; the wife who bitches about her hubby's low income at X employer; the woman who whines about her poor performance review at X company; the ones sharing gory details about conquests, meds, drunken binges, self-abuse, etc. It truly baffles me that anyone would post that crap to teh Internets, but I'm told that makes me sound "old." So be it -- get off my lawn!

[cboy4]

22. He found me through the auto-find feature of e-mail

addresses.

Live and learn.

So now I have a good boy account using my real name.

And a rant account, using a fake name and an unidentifiable e-mail address.

I disagree with your viewpoint about not having a problem with the company spying.

It far, far too big brother for me.

And we see what can happen vis-a-vis this employee in Philadelphia.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

25. Were you using your company e-mail for the Twitter account?

Or your boss had access to a personal e-mail address of yours to find you via auto-find? Just curious.

[cboy4]

27. LOL, I'm not that dumb WorseBeforeBetter

Yes, he has my personal e-mail, since I've e-mailed him from home.

I don't care that he has my hotmail account.

At least I didn't, until he popped up on Twitter.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

29. Just checking. :-P

Like separation of church and state, I'm a firm believer in separation of work and personal life.

[cboy4]

31. Then why are you sending so many mixed messages about

your opinion on this subject, or are you simply trying to work me up? lol

[WorseBeforeBetter]

34. Who... little ol' me?

WorseBeforeBetter is feeling contrarian this evening!

[cboy4]

36. YUP. And I thought I was the evil one.

[Obamanaut]

17. And a good reason to get rid of a disgruntled employee. nt

[cboy4]

18. Sure, although how disgruntled can someone get working

eight home games every year?

For serious sports fans, hanging around your team's stadium on game day, and getting paid for it is a dream job for many.

He said as much, and I believe him .. especially for someone who is disabled.

[Wind Dancer]

11. Shameful!

Nothing shocks me anymore, absolutely nothing.

[chollybocker]

13. "Dam Eagles R Retarted"

Well, at least he spelled one word right.

[Tab]

14. Speaking as both an employee and an employer

(not at the same time, obviously)

As an employer, I would take a dim view of an employee expressing gross dissatisfaction with his job / management decisions. I could consider them, if they were brought up, but if they were just publicized without trying to address them internally, I'd hear the "chip on the shoulder" refrain.

As an employee, having made such criticisms, I wouldn't feel that I'd be assured that management would take it in the manner presented (and I don't know exactly how he presented it, relative to his situation). If you're going to be effectively biting the hand that feeds you, you better make sure what you're saying is defensible and honest. If it is, take the bastards to court, but in either case, expect some kind of a showdown.

[MrSlayer]

28. I'm a personal friend of Danny's.

This sort of thing just proves what a soulless, heartless group of chiselers the ownership of the Eagles are. They are scum and I hate them. The problem is we are so passionate for our team that they never have to listen to us or even be cordial, they know the seats will sell no matter what so they don' give a fuck about what we think. What they've done here is a disgrace.

Danny is only saying what the entire city is saying.

[cboy4]

32. THANK YOU

Someone who can vouch for the accuracy of his termination.

[Blue_Tires]

37. if true that was really a dickish thing for the iggles to do

[SoCalDem]

38. People are learning about public v private..painfully.

Google is a fact of life, and anything you have written..especially when you use your "real name" is now out there..FOREVER.. as if you wrote it on a wall ..in spray paint..and it was photographed and put on the front page of every newspaper in the world..

Sitting around in a bar, carping about your team with friends..or complaining about your boss, or your wife or whatever, is one thing, and unless someone has a recoding of you saying it..it's gone as fast as you say it.. but if you write it down, and PUBLISH it online, it never goes away, and a vindictive boss lookign far an excuse to fire you, will use it..

It's going to be very interesting in about 15 years, when all the people who are teens & young-twenties NOW, are going for that "big" job..or running for office..and all the nudie/drunk/goofy videos & pics get dug up online..

[Zavulon]

39. I don't see why the Eagles have to put up with being called "retarded."

You never put up something on the Internet that you expect to remain private. This guy did, and it came back to bite him, but in terms of audience it was actually worse than marching in front of the stadium with a "Eagles are retarded" sign because the audience potential is much higher.

Now let's switch to "retarded" for a moment.

"Retarded" is a slur which usually riles people up, and yet this time it's overlooked because the poor little guy is being fired by the eeeeeeeeeeeeevil rich football team.

No sale. What he did was stupid and the Eagles were not required to tolerate it or to accept his "20 million" apologies.

By the way, does anyone know what Dawkins' salary demands were or any other bumps in the road en route to the possibility of keeping him? Maybe, just maybe, the Eagles weren't retarded at all.

Sorry, I don't automatically side with the little guy. Sometimes, the eeeeeeeeeeeeevil employer has a point. I'd have fired him, too.

[ozu]

40. n/t

Edit: Didn't mean to reply to Zavulon. Ooops.

[Zavulon]

42. Personally, I wouldn't.

For all we know, he had a co-worker rat him out. Still, he put up a usually unacceptable slur against his employer on a site that millions view.

And, with all due respect, I do not blindly accept your "it was obviously wrong of the Eagles to fire him. Whether the Eagles friended him just to monitor him or not, he was stupid enough to do what he did. I wouldn't friend a subordinate just to keep tabs on him / her (although I should point out that I don't have a Facebook account to begin with), but is said subordinate called me a retard in front of millions I'd be very quick with the pink slip.

As such, the only "obviously" I see here is that it was "obviously" stupid and wrong for him to do what he did. Actions have consequences. I support the Eagles here.

[Zavulon]

43. NT

Just noticed that the post I was replying to was moved because it was meant in response to the OP, not to me.

[ozu]

41. Why would you friend someone you only work with?

Friending people you have no personal relationship with is asking for your privacy to be invaded. Unless he keeps his page open for all to see (very dumb) there would be no way for his employers to have any idea what he was posting.

It was obviously wrong of the Eagles to fire him, but it's incredibly naive to think that HR departments aren't using Google or social networking sites to weed out applicants/employees these days.