By Evan Vitale
In our ongoing discussion on the importance of having an employee manual, we’ll wrap up a few items that you want to make sure you include (and cover in detail) when you are creating or updating a manual for your staff.
Remember: It is extremely important to have an employee manual. It needs to include everything from compensation to vacation time, benefits and more. Check out Part I and Part II in this blog series for more information.
Here are a few more items that should be included in every employee manual:
Employee Benefits – Aside from employee compensation, this section is extremely important to every employee as they want to know what benefits they can receive while working for your company. This section should include details on what programs are being offered by your firm and what the eligibility requirements are for all benefits. This section should also cover the mandatory benefits that are required by law (such as workers compensation) as well as any fringe benefits. Be specific about the time frame as well as what benefits are available for part-time and full-time employees (i.e., vacation time; health insurance; performance bonuses, etc.).
Leave Policies – Time off requests outside of vacation or sick time should be outlined in this section. This would include medical and family leave; jury duty; military leave, etc.
Safety and Security – Here, detail your practice policies for creating a safe and healthy work environment. Also include specifics about sensitive information; security, such as locking filing cabinets; use of passwords, etc.
Computers and Technology – Outline the appropriate use of the company’s computers and other information in this section. Be specific that the system is used and owned by the company and that they staff should assume no privacy for any information they have on the system. This section should also outline your own policies regarding social media; confidentiality, etc.
As a reminder, preparing a proper; detailed and accurate employee manual is not a typical do it yourself project. Consult with and hire an experienced advisor who can put an employee manual together with the right details. Also consider consulting with your attorney and having him/her review the employee manual as well.