Don’t Forget These Policies And Procedures
We have often written in the past about the kinds of corporate documents, and specifically policies and procedures that you need for your business. But a comprehensive list of every kind of policy and procedure that your business should have would be impossible to put together.
Firstly, much depends on your specific business and the way it is set up, and secondly, for larger businesses, the list could potentially go on forever.
Still, there are some policies that everybody knows they need. And then there are those that businesses may not have even thought of, or didn’t realize should even be a policy or procedure. To help you, here are some kinds of policies and procedures that your business should have that your business may not have right now.
Complaint policies – When a worker has a complaint, where do they go? How do they register a complaint and to whom? What happens once the complaint has been registered? To avoid harassment and discrimination suits, your complaint policy should be effective, fair and made public to everybody through a written policy.
IT/Technology policies – This actually could be broken up into two policies for IT in the office (like desktop computers) and for remote computing, such as how data is managed on people’s private phones, tablets or other devices (this is sometimes called a “bring your own device” or BYOD policy).
Either way, your company should have written policies about what kind of behavior online is acceptable, what business-owned technology can be used for, and disclosing that information that someone does with their work computers is the property of, and can be monitored or seen by, the company. Security of private information should also be addressed.
Bad weather or emergency office closure policies – obviously, this would mostly be for weather so bad, that normal office or business procedures can’t be followed. How will employees “check in” to make sure they’re OK? Are there essential functions of the business that can be run remotely? Are there employees who may have to take on extra duties from home, if people can’t get to the office or if the office is damaged?
Face mask and COVID-related policies – In Florida, businesses are generally safe from being sued for exposing others to COVID. However, businesses can’t be careless about COVID policies and procedures. A written policy can help protect your business from these kinds of lawsuits. This policy may be fluid, as CDC recommendations change.
Travel policies – If you have employees that travel, they will need to know what kind of accommodations they are allowed to make, spending limits, and what kind of expenditures need or don’t need pre-approval.
Security – Are there certain areas of your business that some employees shouldn’t be allowed to enter? Or machinery they shouldn’t be able to use? Do you have a customer base or clientele that needs security measures? These kinds of restrictions should be written into a policy.
Call the West Palm Beach business litigation attorneys at Pike & Lustig today for help to see if your business has the policies and procedures that it needs to have.
Sources:
indeed.com/hire/c/info/company-policies
uk.practicallaw.thomsonreuters.com/w-006-4835?transitionType=Default&contextData=(sc.Default)&firstPage=true
