Every company should have an employee handbook that it gives out to all the new recruits that are brought into the team. This is a small book or leaflet that will be filled with most of the basic knowledge and information that anyone working at the company needs to know. It’s the place for all new hires to go to whenever they have a question. Then, if the handbook doesn’t answer it for them, they can go onto ask their line manager.
Do you not have an employee handbook for your business yet? Don’t worry, they aren’t too difficult to make. You just need to make sure that you include all of the following important information.
Welcome Letter From The CEO
Generally speaking, most CEOs don’t get the chance to welcome each new employee individually as they are such busy people. There is one way around this, though – just add a quick welcome note from them in the front of the handbook. This should be a warm and friendly letter saying how happy they are that the employee has joined the company. It’s also the chance to mention the main values of the organization as well.
Employment Policies
I’m sure that your company will have a lot of employment policies, such as the code of conduct, benefits, and safety. It’s a good idea to try to outline all of the policies in the handbook so that every employee has easy access to them if they ever need to check any of them. You might not be able to list every single one, but it’s good practice to mention the main ones.
Line Of Contact
You should also mention the correct line of contact for each employee. This will inform them who they need to approach with certain issues and questions. They might need to contact IT support directly themselves if they have any problems with their computer or other devices. When it comes to requesting time off, they may need to speak to their line manager. It’s important that they know exactly who to approach as it speeds up solving any of their issues.
Operating Hours
Don’t forget to include the company’s operating hours as well. Then everyone knows what time they are expected to be in the office for in the morning. Most companies will also have quite strict policies when it comes to employees being on site outside of these hours. This is often the case with workplaces that could be fairly dangerous, such as workshops. No employees might be allowed on site out of the usual work hours without correct supervision. If this is the case, it needs to be mentioned in the handbook.
The Review Process
Every company needs to have a review process in place for its employees so that their progress can be tracked. It’s a good idea to detail this in the handbook so that new hires know when to expect their first review and the process that it will take.
A good handbook usually equals happy employees!
