No matter how small your firm may be, it needs an office manual.
A manual is the authoritative source that explains what’s expected of everybody. It’s the firm’s philosophy, and it’s the rules and guidelines people have to follow.
It is protection against employment law claims. And legalities aside, it prevents misunderstandings and hard feelings.
Don’t assume people know what’s expected. What’s in an employee’s mind can be quite different from what the firm has in mind, and that can create difficult spots and hard feelings. Suppose a staffer has a death in the family, takes two weeks for bereavement, and gets paid for only one week. The staffer expected more and is angry; the office expected to see the staffer back after one week and is equally angry.
Here are the essential points that manual needs to cover:
• Conditions of employment. The most important part here is an employment at will statement, although that the statement alone will not protect the firm against claims of wrongful firing. Along with that, explain whatever other employment measures the firm has. If there’s a probationary period for new employees, for example, tell how it works and when benefits and time off start to accrue.
• Salary. Tell with what frequency people get paid – weekly, monthly, or otherwise. For automatic deposit, explain the procedure for setting it up.
• Benefits. Describe what insurance coverage the firm provides such as major health, dental, and vision. If there’s a retirement plan, explain how it works. Also list any other benefits such as club and gym memberships and allowances for professional association dues and continuing education. Take advantage of this section. Mention everything the office provides beyond salary. Benefits have significant value, and employees tend to forget that their benefits make up a significant portion of their income.
• Hours and overtime. Tell what the working hours are, and explain whatever overtime requirements the office has, perhaps that overtime must be preapproved by a manager. Tell when comp time will be given in lieu of overtime. Also give a summary of the federal and state overtime provisions. In some states they are extremely restrictive.
• Leave. Tell what type of leave the firm recognizes, perhaps vacation, sick time, personal matters, bereavement, and maternity leave, and give the length of time for each. Explain how the time is accrued. Outline the procedure for requesting time off. If the Family and Medical Leave Act applies to the office, tell what it covers and explain how to apply for it.
• Absenteeism and tardiness. This, of course, tells the hours people are expected to be at work. But along with that, tell how to report tardiness and sick days. Explain the procedure for getting medical and personal appointments approved. Tell how many tardy incidents constitute disciplinary action and what the consequences can be. Tell what happens if someone exceeds the number of sick days. Tell what happens if someone leaves work early without approval. Remember that management needs to adhere to the same standards employees are required to meet. If the boss is constantly late, it’s not easy to require staff to get to work on time.
• Performance reviews. This section needs to cover all the layers of reviews the firm conducts. For example, if there are quarterly reviews in addition to an annual review or if there are peer reviews, tell what they cover and how staff will be graded at each level. Explain what weight the reviews carry. If one review can bring a merit increase, for example, tell what the criteria are for getting it. Or if employee attitude is included in the evaluation, explain how attitude is graded. The more reviews, the better. Employees have a right to know where they stand, and an annual review is scarcely the best time to tell someone “six months ago, you did X.”
• Appearance. Tell in general terms what appropriate attire is for the firm, and then give a non-inclusive list of what the firm does not allow. That might include things such as tattoos, piercings, body jewelry, certain hair color and styles, and even certain nail polish colors. Doing that prevents current employees from dyeing their hair hot pink or getting full-body tattoos. It also wards off the job applicants who are apt to look like that. And it keeps the firm safe from a wrongful firing claim if it fires somebody who violates the standards.
A good way to ensure professional appearance is to give staff a clothing allowance. If the office expects staff to look professional, they should get at least $300 to $400 annually for office attire. Explain the look the office expects and then let them do their own shopping.
• The discipline policy. If the firm has a progressive discipline policy, outline each step of it. Tell what constitutes dismissal. And tell too what will bring on an immediate dismissal – things such as willful destruction of the office or business, embezzlement, violence, and narcotics possession.
• Criminal background checks. If the firm does them, say so and say that employment is subject to the findings of the background check. Say too that a false resume statement is grounds for termination.
• Outside employment. It’s not a bad idea to impose restrictions here. For example, the office might say that employees can’t work part-time for another firm. Neither is it a bad idea to require that any outside employment be approved by the firm. That prevents someone from getting another job that reflects negatively on the firm or causes a strain on the existing job. Without that provision, the firm can’t say much if the receptionist starts working at night as a stripper.
Don’t forget the job description
Just as the manual has to be clear, so do the job descriptions. Those descriptions are the only way people can know what their roles and responsibilities are and what they will be held accountable for. The clearest way to write them is to bullet the specific responsibilities. For the receptionist, that might be to answer all incoming lines, greet visitors, distribute the mail, and so on. But don’t just tell what the task is; tell how it has to be done. For example, instead of “greet visitors,” make it “greet visitors warmly as soon as they walk in the door,” or instead of just “distribute the mail,” expand it to “distribute the mail by noon.”
Also, be aware that the duties make up only about 80 percent of what’s expected in a job. The other 20 percent is a matter of bending over backwards for the firm, and that needs to be included as well. Term it “other duties,” and list things such as cross training, covering for people who are out, treating everyone with respect, and even emptying the trash can at the end of the day. If overtime is expected, include that as well. Having all that spelled out prevents anybody’s griping that “I wasn’t hired for that.”
| Editor’s picks: | ||
 An easy way to do those dreaded staff job descriptions
|
 A manual that covers the entire administration |
 Georgia manager develops “how-to” manual that makes employee orientation easy |