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Employee Handbook:
Guide to Employee
Handbooks
The company employee handbook is one of the most important
communication tools between your company and your employees.
Not only does it set forth your expectations for your employees,
but it also describes what they can expect from the company.
It is essential that your company has one and that it be as
clear and unambiguous as possible. Make certain that it is
written in an understandable language which makes the company's
policies accessible.
The company employee handbook and related personnel policies
are usually the first formal communication that you will have
with an employee after they join your team. Make sure the
first impression is a good one. Similarly, in the event of
a dispute or poor performance review, this will be the first
place that the employee turns.
If your handbook is good, you get a bonus: a measure of legal
protection if you're challenged by an employee in a court
or administrative proceeding. A handbook can be an objective
piece of evidence showing that you've adopted fair and uniform
policies and have informed your employees of exactly where
they stand in their employment.
Key Components To Creating An Employee Handbook
Keep in mind when developing your handbook not to include
unnecessarily specific information; shorter is almost always
better. Experts consider the following subjects to be the
most essential ones to cover:
- Company overview. Introduce your company with a
few paragraphs about its history, growth, goals, ethics
and management philosophy.
- Equal opportunity statement. State that an employee's
religion, age, sex or race will have nothing to do with
hiring, promotion, pay or benefits.
- Work hours. Define the work week and time allotted
for lunch and breaks.
- Pay and performance issues. Because pay issues
are sensitive, it is wise not to include specific numbers
or targets. General statements about when paychecks will
arrive, how promotions and wage increases are handled, classification
of employees (part-time, full-time, on-call) and policies
on pay advances, leaves without pay, overtime and other
pay irregularities are sufficient.
- Performance Review. Also include the policy on
performance review so employees will know in exactly what
areas they will be evaluated and how often (i.e., on the
anniversary of employment or during a set annual or semi-annual
period). You may also want to state that written evaluations
can be made at any time to advise workers of unsatisfactory
performance. Finally, a statement about in-house vs. external
hiring policies may also be appropriate in this section.
- Benefits. Ask your insurance company for copies
of their own brochures that explain your insurance policies
(such as health insurance, parental or maternity leave)
in detail. In addition, your handbook need only define who
is eligible for insurance, how long a new employee must
wait for coverage, and what portion of premium costs is
paid by the company. Also list additional insurance such
as dental or disability that employees can buy through the
company.
- Time Off. Explain policies on vacation and all
types of leave, including sick, military, funeral, personal,
family, medical and jury duty. List paid holidays.
For ease of use, include an "Information at a Glance" section
outlining your benefits packages. Include important numbers
(such as group insurance numbers or the company code) and
phone numbers employees can use to speak directly with benefits
representatives.
- Pension or profit-sharing plans. Discuss when and
how employees become eligible, whether an employee contribution
is permitted or required, and when employees become vested.
- Standards of conduct. One of the most important
reasons to have the employee handbook is to ensure that
staff understand what you expect of them. Toward this end,
detail desired behavior (such as dress and timeliness) as
well as your policies on sexual harassment, racial and sexual
discrimination, use of alcohol, drugs and tobacco in the
workplace (including pre-employment screening and post-
accident testing), and disciplinary procedures.
- Termination. List the just causes for which you
will fire an employee, including criminal activity, poor
performance, dishonesty, security breaches, insubordination,
absenteeism, company policy violations, health and safety
threats and dress code infractions.
Also add the disclaimer that the handbook is not a contract,
policies can be changed at any time, and all employment is
"at will." This means that the company's relationship with
employees is not a guarantee of employment, and can be terminated
at any time with or without cause or notice.
Finally, outline your grievance procedure.
- General information. This section should be geared
toward new hires who may not know how to get around, at
what time they'll eat lunch, or where they should park.
Consider including these items: area maps, a parking pass,
an organizational chart, phone lists, a statement regarding
the confidential nature of your business, and policies addressing
gifts, use of company cars, traffic tickets and personal telephone
calls.
- Forms. It is logical to have blank forms attached
to the policies to which they refer. While individual businesses
will need different forms, consider including blank forms
regarding: sick leaves, vacations, seminar attendance, sub-
contractor contracts, requests for a quotation, grievance
filing, travel reimbursement, performance reviews, pay advances
and accident reports.
Reader acknowledgment. Protect your liability and
encourage employees to read the handbook by having them sign
an acknowledgment letter. Another option is to include two
copies of an acknowledgment letter; one stays with the handbook
after being signed while the other goes in the personnel file.
Every successful business must have defined processes and
procedures to track and manage their daily business operations.
Hopefully you will find these files helpful in starting and
managing your business. Please download any or all of the
following Employee Related Documents and Spreadsheet Files.
The following files are available
for download:
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