Online User Conduct Guidelines
Great Place To Work® Institute, Inc. (“GPTW”) wishes to provide opportunities to exchange information and ideas that help companies and the community at large build great workplaces. You can comment on an article posted on a GPTW website (the “Site”) or you can participate in social media websites – including, but not limited to, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – by clicking on a link from the Site.
Compliance with Law & with Terms of Use
If you choose to post a comment or participate in social media, you agree to comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including, without limitation, intellectual property laws and privacy laws.
You also agree to comply with the Terms & Conditions that govern the Site.
Additionally, you agree to comply with the term and conditions that are posted on the relevant social media website – such as Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.
If there is any inconsistency between these Online User Conduct Guidelines (the “Guidelines”) and the Terms & Conditions posted on the Site, you agree that these GPTW Guidelines shall take precedence. Similarly, if there is any inconsistency between these Guidelines and any terms posted by Facebook or any other social media website, you agree that these GPTW Guidelines shall take precedence.
Please note that in the rare case that users violate our Guidelines, they will be sent a warning, and if necessary, will be banned from further posting.
User Content
You understand and agree that all text, graphics, software, music, sound, photographs, videos, messages, posts, data, information, or other materials (collectively, the "User Content") is the sole responsibility of the person with whom the User Content originated. Therefore, you are responsible for all User Content that you post, disseminate or transmit.
You will post honestly and in good faith and with the intention to inform and promote discussion. Users who cause disruption are not welcome. If we believe you are posting with the intent to cause disruption or harm, you will be barred from making further postings.
You agree not to:
(1) post or disseminate any User Content that is unlawful, harassing, defamatory, abusive, threatening, obscene, harmful, tortious, libelous, or invasive of another's privacy;
(2) post or disseminate any User Content that infringes or violates any party's copyright, trademark, trade secret, patent, or other proprietary right, including, but not limited to, using third party copyrighted materials without appropriate permission or attribution, using third party trademarks without appropriate permission or attribution, and using or distributing third party information (whether or not protected as a trade secret) in violation of a duty of confidentiality;
(3) post or disseminate any worms, viruses, or other harmful, disruptive, or destructive files, code, or programs;
(4) post or disseminate any advertising, promotional materials, chain letters, spam, junk mail, or any other type of unsolicited mass e-mail to people or entities that have not agreed to be part of such mailings;
(5) impersonate any person or entity; falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity; intentionally omit, delete, forge, or misrepresent transmission information, including headers, return mailing, and Internet protocol addresses; or otherwise manipulate identifiers to disguise the origin of any User Content transmitted;
(6) post or disseminate any User Content you do not have the right to post, disseminate, or transmit;
(7) disrupt the normal flow of dialogue or otherwise act in a manner that negatively affects other users' ability to engage in real-time exchanges;
(8) interfere with, disrupt, or harm in any way the Site or servers or networks connected to the Site;
(9) attack the character or damage the reputation of other users, name-call, insult, ridicule, mock, electronically stalk or otherwise harass another user;
(10) insult, attack, belittle, or ridicule the beliefs and life choices of other users;
(11) collect or store personal data about other users;
(12) engage in any activities that would violate the personal privacy rights of others, including but not limited to collecting and distributing information about other users without their permission, except as permitted by applicable law;
(13) use the Site for any illegal purpose;
(14) post the first and last name or any other identifying information of any individual, including without limitation, where they work, or the exact address where they live, unless you have his or her permission; notwithstanding this guideline, if you are posting factual information about a company, you may include the full name(s) of individuals and their job titles and locations, on condition that your post is accurate and not defamatory;
(15) forward or post private messages that someone has sent you unless you have his/her written permission; or
(16) select a screen name that is vulgar or obscene or that misrepresents you to other users;
Photographs
(17) You are welcome to post photos, as long as they are consistent with all of our Guidelines and provided that you have obtained written consent from the photographer and from any person who is depicted.
Other Websites
(18) You may mention, link to or discuss other websites that are of interest to users, provided that websites to which you link or refer are consistent with our Guidelines.
Violations of these Guidelines
(1) If you violate these Guidelines, your actions may result in either a warning, a suspension, or permanent banning from participation in the Site.
(2) Banning is done at GPTW's discretion and is the result of our sole judgment of a user's demonstrated inability or disinclination to follow our Guidelines.
User Content/Correspondence
You acknowledge that GPTW does not generally prescreen User Content, but that GPTW and its designees shall have the right (but not the obligation) in their sole discretion to edit, refuse, remove, or move any User Content. GPTW and its designees will have the right to remove any User Content that GPTW considers, in its sole discretion, objectionable, whether for legal or for other reasons.
You acknowledge and agree that GPTW may preserve User Content and may also disclose User Content if required to do so by law or in the good faith belief that such preservation or disclosure is reasonably necessary to (a) comply with legal process; (b) respond to claims that any User Content violates the rights of third parties; or (c) protect the rights, property, or personal safety of GPTW, its users, and the public.
Details regarding our use of personally identifiable information included in User Content are set out in our Privacy Policy.
By posting User Content to the Site or by transmitting User Content using the Site, you (1) represent and warrant to GPTW that you have obtained all necessary licenses, consents, waivers, releases, authorizations and/or permissions to post or transmit the User Content; and (2) grant to GPTW an irrevocable, worldwide, nonexclusive, perpetual, fully sub-licensable, royalty-free right and license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, publish, translate, create derivative works from, distribute, transmit, publicly perform, and publicly display such User Content (in whole or part) and/or to incorporate it (in whole or in part) in other works in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed.
You acknowledge that the Site contains the opinions and views of other users for which GPTW is not responsible. You acknowledge further that GPTW is not responsible for the accuracy of any User Content posted on the Site. You understand and agree that you shall evaluate, and bear all risks associated with the use of any User Content, including any reliance on the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of such User Content.
Any comments, materials, or letters sent by you to GPTW regarding the Site, including, without limitation, questions, comments, suggestions, criticisms, or the like shall be deemed to be non-confidential and free of any claims of proprietary or personal rights unless you explicitly state in the correspondence that the material (i) is "not for publication" and (ii) contains "private and proprietary" information that may not be distributed. GPTW will have no obligation of any kind with respect to materials that you do not restrict and GPTW will be free to reproduce, use, disclose, exhibit, publicly display, transform, edit, abridge, create derivative works from, and/or distribute materials that you do not restrict. You also acknowledge that what you post may be indexed by search engines such as Yahoo or Google. Furthermore, GPTW is free to use any ideas, concepts, know-how, or techniques contained in any communication you send to GPTW, for any purpose whatsoever, without compensation or any other obligations to anyone, including yourself.
Storage of Content
You agree that GPTW may establish, in its sole discretion and without prior notice to you, a maximum amount of storage space for User Content maintained, disseminated, or transmitted through the Site. You agree that GPTW has no responsibility or liability for the deletion of or failure to store any messages, communications, or other User Content maintained, disseminated, or transmitted through the Site.
Your Contact with Third Parties
Your dealings with third parties found on or through the Site are solely between you and the third party. GPTW does not make any representations or warranties with respect to any goods or services that may be obtained from such third parties, and you agree that GPTW will have no liability with respect to any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of any dealings between you and any third party, or as a result of the presence of such third parties on the Site.
Termination
You agree that GPTW may, in its sole discretion, and at any time, terminate your use of the Site, and may remove or delete any or all of your User Content from the Site, without prior notice to you for any reason that GPTW, in its sole discretion, deems appropriate. You further agree that GPTW will not be liable to you or to any third party for the consequences of any termination of your use of or access to the Site. In the event of any termination of your use of or access to the Site, you agree that the provisions regarding intellectual property rights, indemnification, disclaimers, warranties, limitations of liability, and applicable law shall survive any such termination.
Translations
These Online User Content Guidelines are posted on GPTW’s affiliate websites in numerous jurisdictions around the world and in numerous languages. If you are not fluent in the language you are reading, please visit the website of the Great Place To Work® affiliate in the country in which the language is spoken in which you are most comfortable. For questions use the “CONTACT US” feature.
Last Modified: June 9, 2011