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Mention the words “employee handbook” and you conjure up an image. Sadly, it’s usually a blah image. The employee handbook is that thing in your drawer you got when you joined the company. It’s that thing you have to write because, well, you’re a company. The employee handbook is a necessity for any serious business, but it can be so much more. The employee handbook can help to set the tone for your company and its attitude toward your people. It can be an important tool for communicating workplace culture, values, benefits and policy information to your employees.

The Company Bible

The employee manual should start by being an information reservoir. It should be the central place where employees can go to for just about any company information. If you have expectations of your people, the handbook is where you lay them out.

Any conditions specific to your state or industry should be mentioned in the beginning. This could include an “At Will” employment statement (if your state is an At Will state) and a statement that explains the manual is not a employment contract. Other handbook necessities will include an EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) statement, the company policy on holidays, vacation time, sick time, personal leave, attendance policy, pay periods, payroll deductions, benefits and the FMLA(Family Medical Leave Act). This includes private employers who employ fifty or more employees in twenty or more calendar weeks and any public agencies regardless of their number of employees.

The list of what should be in your handbook will vary state by state, so be sure that you become familiar with the appropriate state and federal laws.

A Behavioral Framework

A well written manual should inform employees and help managers make decisions and maintain consistency. Documenting policies and procedures in a manual is important for any business small or large. Many small businesses don’t feel that such policies apply to their business and prefer to keep management flexible. Over time, though this can create problems for businesses that are growing or planning to grow. A key in writing a good employee handbook is to plan ahead. What kind of business will you be next year? In five years? How will your expectations of your employees change if you double in size? In almost all states there are laws and labor codes that apply to all employers with one or more employees.

Composing Your Manual

The process of preparing and maintaining an employee handbook can be complicated. If you are preparing a manual for the first time, look for guidance to other successful models. When possible, get a copy of a manual of a national company you admire. See how they approach core issues and how they order and list the priorities for their people. Then compose your own handbook, making sure to underscore the workplace issues which mean the most to you. When you are finished, have an attorney review the final document.

The employee manual process doesn’t end with the publication of your handbook. Actually, the process never ends. As a company grows new policies and procedures need to be adopted, so a yearly review is a necessary task. A manual is not a static statement that you write once; it is a document which will continue to change with your company. You must be prepared for those changes and you must regularly commit them to writing when applicable.

Make the Commitment

Too many companies avoid the commitment of time and money required to prepare a proper employee policy manual and keep it regularly updated. Don’t be penny wise and pound foolish. Over time, having a thorough and regularly revised manual will reduce the amount of litigation and conflict while showing your employees that you are the great company you claim to be.

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