Fair Business and Employment Practices
Purpose of the Process (see below how HRnetSource™ can help):
Fair business and employment practices reduce the risk of lawsuits and foster a productive work environment and an atmosphere of trust among employees and customers.
Recommended Steps in the Process:
- Top management implements policies that address fair business
and employment practices. These include the following:
- Ethical Business Conduct Policy (see
sample policy). This policy promotes compliance with
government regulations, discourages employees from hiding
problems (which can increase in severity if not addressed
early), and can enhance the company's reputation among
customers. (Also see the sample
Company Ethics and Conduct Rules.)
- Anti-Harassment Policy (see
sample policy). This policy encourages fair and
respectful interactions among employees which allows
employees to focus on fulfilling their job requirements. An
Anti-Harassment policy is also essential to reduce the
company's liability in a harassment lawsuit.
- Equal Employment Opportunity Policy (see
sample policy). An Equal Employment Opportunity Policy
is an important part of the company's legal obligation not
to discriminate in employment and to discourage
discriminatory behavior among employees.
- Conflict of Interest Policy (see
sample policy). This policy establishes guidelines to
protect the assets of the company and the reputation of the
company among its customers. Conflict of interest can also
be addressed in the Employee Agreement form (see
sample) which is signed by the employee at the time of
hire (see New Hire Orientation process).
- No Smoking Policy (see
sample policy). Not allowing smoking in the work place
has become a common practice. Many local ordinances prohibit
smoking in the work place. This policy can be used to
explain and delineate the no-smoking requirement. Smoke
restriction policies can range from smoke-free on all
company premises (even the parking lot) to designated
smoking areas in the company.
- Drug and Alcohol Control Policy (see
sample policy). It is generally a good practice for a
company to emphasize its intolerance of alcohol and drug
abuse. The company may be liable for drug or alcohol related
damages and injuries occurring on the workplace if the
company does not have effective policies and practices to
handle drug and alcohol abuse.
- Pay Policy (see sample
policy). Pay is an issue that affects all employees.
The value of having a pay policy is establishing fair and
consistent pay practices and avoiding misunderstandings. You
may wish to review the summary of
Wage and Hour Laws (primarily the Fair Labor Standards
Act) before establishing the Pay Policy. Also refer to the On-Call and Report-In Pay policy
and other paid time-off policies referenced in the process
on Establishing a Paid Time-Off
Program.
- Ethical Business Conduct Policy (see
sample policy). This policy promotes compliance with
government regulations, discourages employees from hiding
problems (which can increase in severity if not addressed
early), and can enhance the company's reputation among
customers. (Also see the sample
Company Ethics and Conduct Rules.)
- Inform and remind employees of these policies during new
hire orientation, and at company meetings. Post
these policies on the company bulletin board and on the
company's internal web site (if applicable). Encourage employees
to report incidents of harassment (or other behavior contrary to
these policies) promptly to their manager or Human Resources.
- Train supervisors and managers on how to maintain a work
environment that encourages compliance with fair business and
employment practices. Training is particularly valuable as a
prevention tool and as a defense against possible discrimination
or harassment charges.
- Top management should show support of these policies by
practicing the prescribed behavior.
- If employees report behavior that is contrary to these policies, investigate the reports promptly and thoroughly (see Conducting Investigations process) and initiate disciplinary actions (see Disciplinary process) against employees who violate these policies.
Process Tips:
Top management must follow these policies ("walk the walk and talk the talk"), otherwise they will not be credible to employees. It is better not to have a written policy than to have the policy and not follow it.
Post your HR policies on the HR Portal™ or on SelfSource™ to allow for quick and easy
access.
