PVMA Keystone Veterinarian Winter 2021 - 24

Practice Pearls

THE EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK
THE LIVING DOCUMENT THAT
PROTECTS YOUR BUSINESS
By Sam Boore
Founder & CEO of Focus HRO

The employee handbook is much
more than a document that outlines
your company's current policies and
procedures. Instead, it is a document
that changes, updates, and grows with
your company. It embraces the mission
and vision, helps develop and define
acceptable business practices, and helps
unify the team through the sharing of
company goals. It defines work perks
and expectations to the employees
and removes ambiguity. The employee
handbook is a living, breathing document,
that is helpful to owners, managers, and
employees.

The items that should be included in your
handbook is extensive, but we'll touch on
a few that are of most importance:

The employee handbook gives employees
a detailed overview of policies that are
specific to your organization along with
other key procedures, guidelines and
benefits. It sets clear expectations for
your employees while also stating your
legal obligations and defining employee
rights. The employee handbook can
help protect your business against
employee lawsuits and claims, such as
wrongful termination, harassment and
discrimination. Creating an employee
handbook from scratch can be an
overwhelming task, but having one is
essential to creating transparency and
consistency across your organization.
This document helps to communicate
what is expected from management
while assuring compliance with state and
federal regulations.

In U.S. labor law, at-will employment is
an employer's ability to terminate an
employee for any reason (that is, without
having to establish " just cause " ) and
without warning, so long as the reason is
not illegal.

24 | Keystone Veterinarian

Equal Employment Opportunity
Statement:
This explains that all employees have
the right to be treated equally in all
aspects of their jobs. It should be
available in all areas of employment,
including recruitment, job allocation,
promotion, and access to all benefits and
opportunities.
At-Will Employment Statement:

American Disabilities Act (ADA):
Under the ADA, an employee is
protected if they have a physical or
mental impairment that substantially
limits a major life activity. As long as
the employee can perform the essential
functions of their position, with or
without reasonable accommodation,
the employer may not fire the employee
based on their disability.

Immigration Law Compliance:
The Immigration Reform and Control Act
altered U.S. immigration law by making it
illegal to knowingly hire illegal immigrants
and establishing financial and other
penalties for companies that employed
illegal immigrants. In compliance with the
Immigration and Naturalization Control
Act of 1986, each new employee, as a
condition of employment, must complete
the Employment Eligibility Verification
Form (I-9) and present documentation
establishing identity and employment
eligibility.
Other important items that should be
included are:
* Family and Medical Leave Act
(FMLA) (if applicable)
* Consolidated Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act (COBRA)/miniCOBRA
* Employee Retirement Income
Security Act (ERISA) (if applicable)
* Background checks (if applicable)
* Drug & alcohol policies (preemployment, random, etc.)
* Introductory/eligibility periods,
employee classifications
* Time reporting
* Pay information (how is pay
received, payroll deductions, direct
deposit, etc.)
PVMA Keystone Veterinarian Winter 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of PVMA Keystone Veterinarian Winter 2021
