Mr. Ostrich was baffled. In his five years as owner of a small business, he always guessed at the answers to employee benefit queries. And, so far, so good — until now. Ostrich inadvertently gave two employees conflicting answers to the same question, and now they both want to meet with him to get a definitive answer. Unfortunately, he doesn't have one.
Scenarios like this play out every day in organizations that don't have formalized human resource policies. A well-written, comprehensive employee handbook can help your company avoid Ostrich's discomfort. In fact, if done right, a handbook can do even more.
Ostrich was fortunate. His co-workers' question didn't have legal ramifications. But let's not kid ourselves. One of the main reasons companies invest in employee handbooks is protection from lawsuits. In today's litigious environment, it's best to prepare for the worst. Clearly written HR policies strengthen your company's defense if a worker sues. Don't wait to test this theory until an employer-employee relationship heads south.
Look at it another way: A manager without an employee handbook is a lot like a coach without a rule book. You can't expect your managers or team members to play by the rules if they don't know what they are. Comprehensive employee handbooks ensure that everyone knows the rules of the game before they go onto the field.
More than just rules and regulations, employee handbooks can communicate the benefits of working for your firm. Employees sometimes don't appreciate everything their company offers them. Perhaps that's because they — and maybe even their managers — don't know about them.
You needn't go into minutiae about all of your benefit plans, but it never hurts to remind employees that you care about their welfare. Benefits to highlight include maternity leave, summer hours and the organization's contribution to the employer-sponsored health and dental plans.
One word of caution: When it comes to employee handbooks, one size definitely doesn't fit all. Think twice before making a few changes to an associate's "borrowed" handbook and calling it your own. The handbook's tone may be appropriate for a transportation company, for instance, but be unsuitable for yours. Also, keep in mind the questionable integrity of a "borrowed" document. Chances are, you'll have no idea who originally wrote the handbook let alone if it's in compliance.
The same applies to downloading handbooks from the Internet. Yes, the handbook may be fine for, let's say, a company in one state, but may be inappropriate for multi-state employers. Distributing a document that doesn't apply to the state(s) in which you operate can translate into an administrative — or worse, legal — nightmare for you.
You may have worked in an organization that didn't have an employee handbook. In fact, as an owner or manager, you may have felt relieved to escape its whiff of bureaucracy. That may be until someone approaches you with a company-policy question that you can't answer. Properly drafted, updated and followed policies can benefit every company.
10. You like testing your memory.
9. You prefer continual face-to-face interaction with your employees, particularly when rushing to important client meetings.
8. Your expectations of personnel change daily, so your HR policies should too.
7. You believe that the less employees know, the more committed they'll be to the company.
6. You think the status quo is fantastic, so no need to rock the boat.
5. You envision handbooks are only for larger companies. Smaller companies can wing it.
4. You enjoy the thrill of dodging bullets.
3. You encourage employees to do their own thing because it makes your workplace seem creative.
2. Your employees may complain because a handbook is "way too corporate."
1. Your company is immune from all employee lawsuits.
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