Social media powerhouse Facebook recently revealed that it will offer its employees additional paid time off to help staff the polls on election day in November. Executives at the company relayed that Facebook would also offer PTO for any training days required ahead of time to operate said polls.
Last month, Facebook announced it would be offering free ad credits to the election authorities in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., with hopes that the ads could help recruit poll workers. The social media platform has made a conceited effort this election cycle to promote integrity and proactiveness toward a fair election. Due to the proven meddling on the platform during the 2016 Presidential election, Facebook has faced years of criticism for its lack of action and cognizance. To help regain the trust of Americans, founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg himself has made detailed efforts to prevent further misinformation and promote an honest democratic process.
According to an exclusive report from Axios, Facebook will begin sending notifications to people eighteen or older detailing how to sign up as a poll worker in their given state. These alerts will appear at the top of the Facebook app starting tomorrow. In addition to Facebook trying to clean up its own image, as it relates to U.S. elections, the recruitment effort comes amid poll worker shortages, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is partly because many of the people who typically staff the election polls are older and plan to stay home this year for their own health and safety. While Facebook is doing its part in its home state of California by recruiting its own employees, its efforts to recruit younger people to the poll positions in the other 49 states is an attempt to fill the gaps left by COVID-19.
Facebook Is Trying To Make Things Right
Yes, it has been four years, but Facebook is still notoriously known as a breeding ground for voter manipulation and misinformation, and many Americans have not forgotten what happened last time around. With that said, the platform’s revised policies in limiting political ads and labeling potential misinformation is a step in the right direction. By allowing its own employees to take the day off and work as an employee of the country to help expedite a fair election, Facebook is leading by example for other large companies. Furthermore, by allowing free ads to States in order to recruit younger (healthier) citizens to help do their part as poll employees, the company is sending another positive message to the nation’s youth about getting involved and helping combat the turmoil seemingly destined to encompass this election.
Whether people 18+ get out and contribute their efforts in the polls is yet to be seen, but Facebook is taking a more proactive approach to this election than last, and apparently a more concise effort than other mega tech companies. Facebook already houses a poll worker module within its Voting Information Center on both its own site as well as Instagram. These resources help connect people on either platform with vital information about where to volunteer with local election authorities. Hopefully people on Facebook become further informed and energized, especially those younger citizens who will be voting for the very first time, and that other large social media and tech companies are paying attention and set to follow Facebook’s lead in a full-fledged effort toward a well-staffed and fair Presidential election.
