3 Handbook Updates

Generally speaking, SHRM recommends that employee handbooks are reviewed annually, with a suggested review mid year. With COVID protocols ever changing and new administration in the White House, big changes have recently come down the pipeline.

Here are a few hot topics to consider for your 2022 handbook revision:

Vaccine Mandate: As we write this, the vaccine mandate is being challenged in court and OSHA is unable to to enforce the Executive Order passed by President Biden, found here.

Now is the time for your company to determine whether they fall under this mandate, and if they do, their policy for compliance. If your company is not covered, what policy will you draft and have in place for 2022, moving forward? Employees are now asking Vaccine Policies during the interview process.

Pronouns: Cultural inclusivity is more important than ever and one way to ensure you are being inclusive is with the language your company uses in its handbooks. Consider reviewing the pronouns in your handbook to include everyone, while also reviewing that all of your policy is gender neutral. If you allow for maternity leave, ensure that you also have Paternity leave.

Job Site changes: Prior to the pandemic, the job site for many employees was assumed as the place of business but with more people working from home, this has made things more complicated. Now is a great time to create policies defining the job site, commute, return to office policies and more.

Remember, a strong and accurate employee handbook takes the burden off of management to explain policy and procedure on a per occurrence basis, keeping your team more productive and focused on the task at hand.