'Work gossip' | Netflix sackings put focus on workplace policies

In mid-July, news broke that the streaming giant Netflix had sacked three marketing executives for ‘criticising co-workers’ in a Slack channel at work.

It was reported that a whistleblower had found months’ worth of messages on an open Slack channel and reported them.

When the story was first published by The Hollywood Reporter, it was reported that the criticising was about upper management. However, a Netflix Spokesperson had disputed this.

At the time, a Netflix Spokesperson told HR Grapevine: “...These directors were fired because they made critical comments about their peers over several months on Slack, including during meetings when those peers were talking or presenting.