Employee Handbooks: More than Just a Good Idea
Is Developing employee handbooks worth the extra effort?
Employee handbooks are a great resource for any one that is just starting with a company. An Employee Handbook not only gives the employee guidelines to go by, concerning policies and procedures, but it also outlines the expectations for the employee. Employees who know the policies and expectations up front tend to be better employees going forward. CBR has the HR professionals and resources to help you put together a useful and valuable guide for your employees, as well as help you with many other administrative tasks.
Are You Being Clear Enough about Expectations?
It takes time to develop a good employee manual, but it takes a lot more time to keep going over basic expectations with each new person you hire. There are several reasons to have an employee handbook, but here are the top 6:
1. Sets standards and expectations for everyone in the company.
2. Creates Uniformity: rules apply to everyone – not just a few.
3. Keeps the mission and vision of the company in line with business goals.
4. Policies can help avoid legal disputes later. (Always have a signed acknowledgement form)
5. Handbooks are a great resource for employees; it allows them to know the employer’s obligation under the federal employment laws.
6. Provides guidelines and references for Managers and Supervisors within the company when taking disciplinary action on an employee.
Handbooks are also a great way to maintain a positive working environment for your employees
Developing employee handbooks, sometimes called employee manuals or policies and procedures manuals, provides key information you need to have in the hands of your employees. They also establish the lines and boundaries of acceptable behavior.
Cover the Oft-forgotten Basics
In terms of personnel management, an employee handbook should include at least the basic expectations of employees in terms of the following:
- Working Hours
- Attendance policy
- Days off
- How holidays are handled (if floating, especially)
- Health care and benefits programs
- Bonus programs
- Training and Development
- Discipline processes
- Human resource issues such as warnings and terminations
An Easier Way to Cover Rules of Conduct
In addition to the expectations within the company, there are a number of notifications that all employers are required to disclose to all employees. These include (but are not limited to):
- Posting “right to work” regulations: states how an employee must demonstrate the legal right to work in the United States. In some states like Arizona, these processes are mandatory.
- Substance abuse policies: sobriety and testing conditions for maintaining employment
- Regulations and ramifications of workplace discrimination: includes sexual harassment in the workplace, ethnic and religious workplace harassment, or prejudicial actions against protected minorities such as handicapped persons.
- Safety regulations on the worksite.
- Right to monitor employee activities, especially electronic communications and use of internet access.
Clearly, developing employee handbooks is a good idea and it is a great way to make sure you have covered everything you need to. It is true that they are time-consuming to develop, but it is also true that there are resources, such as CBR, that can produce them much more efficiently – and quickly – than burdened internal staff could ever hope to. As your company grows, and as the workforce becomes more diverse, the need for a well-though out employee handbook becomes increasingly essential.
Give CBR a call and we can describe for you we can help you develop and maintain good employee communications, as well as reduce your internal burden of many other administrative tasks like payroll services, employee benefits, and workers’ compensation. Call CBR, toll-free, at (888) 700-8512.
