The End of the Year is Fast Approaching: Let's Take a Look at that Employee Handbook

And just like that, it is late November.? We are driving home in the dark; it is frigid; and the holidays are approaching just as fast as your Q4 deadlines.? During this busy time, it can be easy to focus on the urgent tasks, but not necessarily the most important tasks.? This includes the annual review of your HR Policies and Employee Handbook.? Recently I spoke with the Northeast Indiana Human Relations Association (NIHRA) about the importance of this annual project to ensure compliance, particularly in light of the fast-changing legal landscape with employment law (not to mention the possible headaches with remote work, hybrid work, and returning to the office).? In short, now is a great time to review your policies to ensure compliance and here are a few things to keep in mind when you do:

1.? Don’t turn your handbook into an employment contract.? Most companies prefer to keep their employees working “at will” and an employment contract could turn them into “just cause” employees, thereby making it more difficult to exercise discretion in employment decisions.

2.? Don’t include stand-alone agreements. Remember, the goal of most companies is not to create an employment contract, so the handbook should not include provisions that would otherwise be in a stand-alone agreement.? Non-compete, non-solicit, and/or confidentiality agreements should be in separate documents.

3.? Don’t overpromise.?For example, if your company does not have enough employees to be covered by the FMLA, but still promises FMLA leave in the handbook, then Courts may hold the company to that promise.

4.? Not everything is confidential. Just because you say information is confidential does not necessarily mean that the law agrees.? If information has to do with wages, hours, terms, or conditions of employment, the law permits employees to discuss those matters in most contexts.? So, for example, policies which say “Do not discuss customer or employee information outside of work, including phone numbers and addresses” or “If something is not public information, you must not share it” has been found to be unlawful because it is overbroad and includes those key areas which the law protects.

5.? Include key policies. Certain policies are “must” haves in an effective and legally compliant handbook.? For example, regardless of size, all companies should have an anti-harassment policy to protect their employees from inappropriate workplace behavior.

6.? Don’t trust the internet.? While probably a wise rule in most situations, it is particularly applicable with employee handbooks.? Handbooks are not one-size-fits-all and internet handbooks are often generic. ? An effective handbook must be tailored to the industry and the laws of the states in which the company operates.??

These are just a few areas to keep in mind when performing your policy audit.? A good policy audit requires taking a hard look at all policies which pertain to your employees which will help to protect against the headaches and expense of litigation in 2023.???