Many employers ask themselves the age-old question, “Is it important for our organization to create and implement an employee handbook for our employees?”. Some employers believe that if policies and procedures are not written down they are less likely to have any legal issues for their organization because the policies are not written down. However, many others believe that if policies and procedures are written down then it helps to prevent legal issues for their organizations. So, who is correct? Most employment law attorneys, HR professionals, and employers who do have an employee handbook will tell you that having a well-written employee handbook far outweighs the legal ramifications of not having one in place.
What is the purpose of an employee handbook?
- First and foremost, it is a document that is compliant with all federal, state, and local employment-related laws and regulations and the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), when applicable. Federal laws and regulations differ depending upon the number of employees on the payroll of an organization. So, for some employers, the federal laws and regulations that may be included are: the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act and its Amendments Act (ADAAA), the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA), Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) regulations, Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) regulations, and Continuation of Health Coverage under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), to name a few. State employment-related laws will vary from state to state. For example: Indiana requires that all employers with over 50 employees offer the Indiana Military Family Leave Act benefits to all eligible employees. Illinois requires that all employers with over 50 employees provide the Illinois Small Necessities Leave Act benefits to eligible employees, which includes granting employees unpaid leave for certain activities related to their children. And in Colorado, there is the Colorado Family Medical Leave Insurance (CFMLI) program that provides for up to 12-weeks of paid leave for eligible employees to care for themselves or their families. In Cook County, Illinois employers are required to comply with the Cook County Paid Leave Ordinance that requires most employers in the county to provide employees with at least one-hour of paid leave for every 40-hours worked. Making sure that the employee handbook includes the appropriate federal, state, and local laws and regulations applicable to your organization and the number of employees on payroll is very important.
- Secondly, the employee handbook is a document that explains in detail how the organization wishes for employees to conduct themselves in the workplace. Specifically, it outlines the expectations that the employer has of all employees in all of its policies and procedures. For example, policies may include: rules of conduct and work habits, attendance and punctuality, work hours, computer and email usage, Internet usage, solicitation, social media, sexual and other types of harassment, molestation prevention, nondisclosure, and progressive disciplinary action, to name a few.
- Lastly, it is a tool that assists the organization’s management team with managing employees. It aids leaders, managers, and supervisors in managing their workforce towards one common goal as outlined in the policies and procedures within the document. The management team is also aware of all of the federal, state, and local employment-related laws and regulations that they have to manage to in order for the organization to remain legally compliant, which aids in fewer employee claims and lawsuits.
The employee handbook should be divided into certain sections that contain policies and procedures that all employees are expected to comply with throughout the course of their employment with the organization. The following is a list that may be used when categorizing policies and procedures within an employee handbook:
- Introduction – Generally, there is an introduction section that will have a welcome letter from the leader of the organization or the leadership team, information about the organization’s history, the mission, vision, and values of the organization, and a legal disclaimer about the employee handbook.
- Employment – There is a section that relates to the organization’s employment policies to include: nature of employment, Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), immigration law, conflicts of interest, Americans with Disabilities Act and its Amendments Act (ADAAA), and nondisclosure, to name a few.
- Employment Status and Records – There is a section that relates to employment status and records of the employee to include policies such as: employment categories, access to employee files, job descriptions, a medical information privacy policy in accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), and the use of social security numbers in the workplace.
- Employee Benefits – Another section will include employee benefit information, e.g., paid time off policies, holidays, health insurance benefits, life insurance benefits, short and long-term disability plans, retirement savings benefits, clothing allowances, and mobile device allowances, etc. The employee handbook is not a place to explain in detail about all benefits, but should instead refer the employee to a Summary of Benefits and Coverage (SBC) or summary plan documents for additional details.
- Timekeeping and Payroll – There should be a section on timekeeping and payroll to include: payroll work weeks, how employees are to track their work hours, pay deductions and setoffs, etc.
- Work Conditions and Hours – This section includes policies related to working conditions of the employee to include: safety, work schedules, overtime, flex-time, on call or call in requirements, social media, computer and email usage, Internet usage, and workplace violence prevention, to name a few. Remember that the employee handbook is not a safety manual, but should include general safety guidelines that most employees should follow.
- Leaves of Absence – This section will include both paid and unpaid leaves allowed within the organization to include: the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), military leave, and personal leaves, as appropriate.
- Employee Conduct and Disciplinary Action – The section includes all of those policies that the organization wants the employee to abide by with regards to sexual and other types of harassment, drugs and alcohol use in the workplace, ghost employment, problem resolution, and progressive disciplinary action, to name a few.
- Acknowledgment Form – And last, but not least, there will be an employee handbook acknowledgement form at the end of the document. It is generally placed at the end, so that the employer may assume that the employee has read through each policy within the document. All employees should sign the acknowledgement form and a copy of the form should be kept in the same place as all of the employee’s other employment-related records.
With all of the above being said, having an up-to-date employee handbook is not only a document that aids in keeping the organization compliant with all federal, state, and local employment-related laws and regulations, but one that assists with the communications between the employer and the employee. It sets guidelines and expectations for how employees should conduct themselves in the workplace as well as provides information on how the management team should manage towards those guidelines and expectations, which is why most employers who do have an employee handbook will tell you that having a well-written employee handbook far outweighs the legal ramifications of not having one in place.
For additional information on the creation and implementation of an employee handbook within your organization, please contact us at www.newfocushr.com.
Written By: Kristen Deutsch, M.B.A., CCP
President
12/19/2024
