The Seven Deadly HR Sins in the Workplace

 If the 7 Deadly sins, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Envy and Pride, are practices that are usually best avoided in daily life. There are 7 Deadly HR sins that must be avoided at work for a better workplace, culture & environment.

Sin # 1: Lack of employee handbook 

Because an employee handbook outlines the policies and guidelines of the company, it allows employees to know what is expected of them and what they can expect in return. By communicating the policies of the organization, the employee handbook reduces liabilities that may come through misunderstandings of mutual expectations.

Moreover, employers that can prove that an employee received a handbook may have an advantage in legal disputes. The employee handbook is the perfect vehicle for establishing the good faith efforts to inform employees of their rights.

Sin # 2: Inconsistent enforcement of policies 

Whether written or unwritten, nearly all employers have workplace rules pertaining to conduct issues such as attendance, dress codes and many more. The best practice is, of course, to have written policies. While most companies have something written regarding such issues, the policies are often vague or convoluted thereby leaving room for misinterpretation. A well-written policy will help in avoiding confusion and ensure more consistency in application.

Written policies also clearly communicate to employees what is expected of them and remind management of the rules they are responsible for enforcing. Most importantly, management must be trained to understand that failure to enforce workplace rules against one employee, but choosing to enforce it against another, can lead to claims of unequal treatment or discrimination.

Sin # 3: Not having a company Code of Conduct 

Employers have a duty to provide a specific Code of Conduct to its employees. Having Code of Conduct policy is the first line of defense for employers who have been charged with any illegal issue. Beyond having the policy, it must also be clearly communicated to employees through training. Employers who can demonstrate these attempts at prevention and remediation are less likely to be found liable.

Sin # 4: Discrimination at the workplace 

All employees want to feel equal and respected. At work there can be direct & indirect kinds of discrimination. Direct discrimination is when a person treats, or proposes to treat, someone unfavorably because of a personal characteristic protected by law. Direct discrimination often happens because people make unfair assumptions about what people with certain personal characteristics can and cannot do. Indirect discrimination occurs when an unreasonable condition is imposed that disadvantages a person with a personal characteristic protect by law. Indirect discrimination happens when a workplace policy, practice or behavior seems to treat all workers the same way, but it actually unfairly disadvantages someone because of a personal characteristic protected by law.

Sin # 5: Lack of Performance Management & Feedback Culture 

If you haven’t had a conversation about poor performance lately, you need to sit down and think this through… it’s one of the hardest conversations you can have. The main reason to ensure good performance management is to tighten the link between the business objectives and day-to-day actions. Goal setting contributes to success and bottom line results. Regularly tracking progress against performance goals and objectives also provides the opportunity to recognize and reward employees for performance and effort, contributing to job satisfaction and productivity. Employees want to feel successful, to do well at their job and feel they are making a valuable contribution. In order to ensure this happens, employees need a clear understanding of individual goals and how they fit into the larger organization.

Failure to manage an employee who is not performing well creates a legal issue when an employer decides to terminate the employee. The employee may speculate that the employer’s reasons for termination were illegal and file a lawsuit alleging discrimination or retaliation. Without proper documentation in the employee’s file evidencing poor performance, the employer is left defenseless.

Sin # 6: Don’t know what a “great” workplace looks like and so lack vision

The problem is, if a company has never been great there is nothing to compare with.  Most businesses have great vision about profitability, levels of service, and external customer services and products. What they often don’t have is a vision about how their team will be working together. It’s a little like a workaholic working all the hours he can and paying no attention to his health, eventually he will collapse

Sin # 7: Recruit based on competence instead of excellence

I know in recruitment circles, competency based recruitment is meant positively. Competencies have helped job sponsors be specific about the skills, behaviours and knowledge they need to select an effective candidate. Competencies in themselves though are often not quite right. They often fail to miss the “x” factor needed for certain jobs and again and again, I have seen people recruited who meet all the competencies, but interviewers know they aren’t right for the organisation, or a specific role. The first question a great organisation should ask is: How can we attract excellence to raise the bar in the organisation?

So what is your salvation in light of these HR deadly sins? In other words, how can you deliver yourself from the consequences of these evils? Well, unfortunately, as with any other misdeed, if you get caught, you may not be able to escape the penalties. Therefore, the best practice is to resist the temptation to engage in the sin in the first place. My advice beyond that? Managing employees in a way that complies with all applicable laws is a much more cost effective way of doing business.

What do you think? Do you agree that these are capital HR crimes in the workplace? Have I forgotten any? Leave your comments below.