When properly prepared, the employee handbook should be a critical communication tool between your business and its employees.  Consistent policies are important to risk management  and will also promote a more harmonious work environment.  To provide the best guidance, your handbook should explain your business’ expectations of its employees and establish what your employees can expect from the business.

To keep everyone on the same page, these ten essential items should be included in every employee handbook:

1. A form acknowledging the employee’s receipt of the handbook
2. A disclaimer reserving the employer’s right to change the handbook’s content in the future
3. The organization’s mission statement
4. Recruitment practices, including how open positions are posted and filled
5. Salary administration practices, including merit increases and performance reviews
6. Computer and Internet use policy
7. Employee code of conduct
8. Absence policy, including maternity leave, bereavement leave, and jury duty
9. Complaint and grievance procedures
10. Guidelines for employment termination

This information should be presented in a clear and easy-to-understand fashion, so choose your verbiage carefully.  To avoid making unintentional promises, watch how you word sections concerning employer obligations.  Permissive language like “may” and “could” lets employees know what’s at stake without etching anything in stone—important for handbook sections like Employment Termination and Computer Use.  Also remember that the average American reads at junior-high level, so keep it simple!

Putting these ten handbook essentials to work can be the first step your business takes toward clearer communication and better employee relations!

If you’re motivated to build a better employee handbook, YES! Your Human Resources Solution can guide you through.  We’ll take a look at your handbook’s policies, and we’ll tell you what areas could use some work.  We’ll also help you create effective HR policies that will connect business initiatives with employee needs.  Need help training management staff to follow handbook policies?  Ask about our training programs, such as HR 101 for Supervisors, tailored to fit your business’ needs.  We can even audit your actual HR practices alongside your handbook policies.  Streamlined HR operations can result in fewer employment lawsuits, better handling of employee grievances, and fewer HR-related errors and complaints.

Let our 20 years of HR experience work for you!  Contact the YES! team today for a free consultation.