Designing Employee Handbooks

Legal Limitations

Employment At Will

Employees shall not be considered permanent employees.

All employment is at-will.Employees may have their employment

discontinued for any reason.

Not a Contract

Nothing in this employee handbook shall be construed as an employment contract.

Changes in the Handbook

Management may make changes in the employee handbook at any time.

May vs. Must

“May” statements provide more flexibility than “must” statements.

For example: management must complete performance appraisals by March 1 might cause legal problems if that “must” is not obeyed. “May” is much better.

Sexist Language

Be politically correct in your languageRefer to sales people rather than

salesmanRefer to Workers’ Compensation rather

than Workmen’s Compensation

Posters--Federal

OSHA—It’s the LawEmployee Polygraph Protection ActFair Labor Standards ActEqual Employment Opportunity NoticeDepartment of Justice Notice—Anti-

discrimination

Posters--Idaho

Workers’ Compensation NoticeIdaho Unemployment InsuranceDiscriminationMinimum Wage

Safety

For companies with 11 or more employees, make a provision for safety administration

Separate Recordkeeping Files

Medical records: workers’ compensation claims, exams, and drug and alcohol tests

EEO-1 reports for companies with 100 or more employees

Reference checksImmigration filesThe rest

Length of Time to Keep Records

I9 Form: 3 yearsPension-related files under ERISA: 6

yearsWage rate tables under the FLSA: 2

yearsRecords detailing exposure to toxic

substances: Employee’s tenure plus 30 years

Fair Labor Standards Act

OvertimeTime-and-a-halfIndependent contractors

Independent Contractor Definition20 IRS Rules

Set the hours of work?Dictate the methods by which the task is

to be completed?Pay an hourly wage?Supply materials, tools?Furnish space, telephone secretarial

services?Set fixed geographic limits on the work?

Independent ContractorsBenefits

Don’t have to pay Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, Workers’ Compensation. Contractor does this on his/her own.

Don’t have to deal with city, state, and federal income taxes. Contractor does this on his/her own.

Independent Contractor Limitations

Lose employer control of contractorIRS penalties for paying a contractor

when you really have an employee

Top Twelve Handbook Updates—1. Workplace Violence

Provide employees with reporting opportunities, counseling avenues, and general guidelines on how to act when there is a threat.

Source: Nationalreview.com

2. Benefits Provisions

Monitor changes in benefits plans—particularly health benefits

Obama Health Care Plan--Employers who choose to offer employees health insurance can receive tax cuts of up to 35% of premiums this year, and up to 50% in 2014. More than 60% of small employers will be eligible for these tax cuts.

3. Employee Free Choice Act (still a bill)

Make sure to update bulletin board solicitation in the handbook. Ban all outside solicitation to be consistent.

4. Text Messaging

Texting and DrivingHarassmentRetaliation

5. Social Networking II--Advantages

NetworkingGoodwillIdea generationCustomer complaints and praiseRecruiting

5. Social Networking III-Disadvantages

Sexual HarassmentTime Management and ProductivitySecurityPrivacy—Confidential InformationAccuracyDefamationDiscrimination

6. Location Monitoring

Restrict used of GPS, RFID due to privacy and discrimination concerns

Check http://www.computer.org/portal/web/csdl/proceedings/h#4 for problems and policy statements

7. Adverse Weather/Other Closings

How affect employee compensation for both exempt and nonexempt employees

H1N1

8. Family Medical Leave Act

Military Families—Up to 26 weeks of leave to handle injured or ill military member of the family

http://www.slideshare.net/mdibi/ada-fmla-update

9. Americans with Disabilities Amendments Act of 2008

Eased definitions of handicapped—creates nonexhaustive list

Sitting, bending, caring for oneselfFunctions of the immune system, normal

cell growth, bladder functionsCommon sense standard—not scientifichttp://www.slideshare.net/mdibi/ada-

fmla-update

10. Respectful Workplace Policy

Jerksatwork.comMybossismichaelscott.comDefining respectful workplace behavior

separate from harassment policies because harassment is illegal and disrespect is not

11. Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act

Genetic information should be added to the list of protected classes

Update wellness programs to protect genetic information

12. Charities and Tax-Exempts

Revised IRS Form 990 asks whether employer has whistleblower, conflicts of interest, and document retention and destruction policies.

Same form asks about executive compensation procedures

Sample Handbook Statements

Society for HR Management www.shrm.org (have to be a member)

Bureau of National Affairs’ HR Library (http://library.boisestate.edu/indexes/) Have to be on Boise State campus

Federal government page with examples http://www.business.gov/business-law/employment/hiring/employee-handbook.html

Several state examples http://easyemployeehandbook.com/ Nevada Handbook http://dop.nv.gov/emphand.pdf Generic sample http://www.fhba.com/docs/Employee

%20Handbook%20Sample.doc Many university examples

http://www.hr-guide.com/data/023.htm