Are your templated HR Documents putting you at risk?
HR templates can be a very useful and effective solution for many small businesses to provide a generic response for generic situations. But this simple solution can create some complex problems if they haven’t been properly reviewed.
From an employment perspective, these documents are some of the most important for your business as they become the legal framework that connects you with your employees. In an employee relation crisis, these will be the documents you use to navigate your situation. They set up clear expectations and standards for employees and also provide protection for an employer.
How will your templates hold up? Are they accurate? Relevant?
If your team is growing or, if these documents haven’t been properly reviewed, there can be lurking issues that can create a lot of hassle! With that in mind, here’s why we recommend a proper review with the same care that you would expect (and want!) for those sorts of legal matters. Here are the most common issues we’ve found reviewing generic HR templates:
They are not local. Are you sure the legal template you’re using is even for Canada? Is it for your province? Is it relevant to your city? Employment Standards and Laws are location specific and can differ greatly!
They are not industry specific. A construction site, IT firm and daycare should not have the same handbooks. There are specific situations in each workplace that should be addressed directly and clearly for the benefit of you, your employees and your clients.
They are not relevant or updated. When a handbook isn’t relevant it isn’t followed and it loses authority as the legal document it is. With changing workplaces and pandemic procedures, a lot of places have rules in place that just don’t make sense any more! Are the current rules still relevant? Are your new policies documented?
You don’t actually even agree with it. Maybe the handbook is too restrictive, outdated or, quite frankly, you’re not really even sure what it says. Going against what it states can put you at risk. If you’re not following the stated rules, how will employees (especially new ones!) know which rules to follow and which to ignore?
It’s difficult to understand. “Hitherto”, “forthwith”, “attrition” and other legalese can make an HR document difficult to follow. There are a lot of benefits to having a clear, concise, and easy to understand list of expectations.
Most small business owners understand the importance of having HR documents in place, but it’s also important that they properly serve their purpose! If you’d like to set up a HR Document Assessment to review what you have in place, Mountain View HR is here to help you get it right!
Contact us to discuss if this would make sense for your needs.