Human Resource and Company Policies-Best if in Writing

Regardless of how many employees you have, all company policies should be in writing to assure uniformity and employee awareness. Dress codes, hostile work environment, annual reviews, leave policies, all employee matters should be available to the employees. It is easier for a company to defend itself later if it can show the employees were aware of the policies, the policies are reasonable, and the policies were administered in a fair manner. An overall code of ethics or conduct should be developed as well so the employees are well aware of what is expected out of them regarding their work and possible self-interest issues.

Management policies should be developed as well, so that the employee policies are enforced fairly with each employee, and managers can avoid claims of favoritism or harassment. Additionally, reviews can be accomplished with each employee on a set schedule.

Other company policies can prove beneficial as well, especially email and document retention/destruction policies. It is much easier to defend a company that has a set policy in place and enforces it, rather than a company that deletes email or destroys documents too soon or not soon enough.

Quite a bit to think about! And likely not something a small company should just come up with on their own-there is a lot to consider, and we aren't talking about a one or two page document. There should be comprehensive manuals, set times to administrate the policies, and proper signatures. While this may not completely protect you, these policies can go a long way to showing your company did as much as it could to protect employees interests.

The point is that all of these policies should be developed with the assistance of an attorney, and we can help you run your business as efficiently as possible.