b'MAKE SURE YOUR EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK IS UP TO DATEBy SEAY ManagementYour employee handbook is,E-Mail and the Internet.fundamentally,yourmostTheInternetisthebestofworldsandtheworstof importanthumanresourcesworlds. Your handbook should inform employees that documentbecauseitisthetheir e-mail may be monitored by the employer and that documentonwhichyoutheyarenottouseoensivelanguageonthee-mail base all of your employmentsystem. Specically, they are not to use language that decisions. It is the repositoryis racially, ethnically, religiously or sexually oensive. In of your employment policiesaddition, employees may access only authorized web andprocedures.Thus,itssites, and may not access oensive web sites.criticallyimportanttomake surethatyouremployeeCondential Information.handbookisalwaysuptoInformemployeesthattheymayhaveaccessto date and in compliance withcondential information which belongs to the employer theemploymentregulationsandthattheyarenottoremovecopiesofit,neither thatcoveryourbusiness,hard copies nor computerized or disk copies, nor are and that it contains all of the policies and proceduresthey to download unauthorized material.youneedtohireandretaingoodemployeesand motivate them to superior performance. Here are someDress Code.important policies that we recommend you consider. Your dress code policy should deal with the new trends indressandmustspecicallydeneemployer Management Prerogative. expectations.Someoftheareasthatshouldbe Management reserves the right to make and interpretincludedinthepolicyaretattoos,unusualpiercings, policy whenever, in the opinion of management, this isextravagant hair color, scents from cosmetics, colognes necessary. This is a critically important and key policyorotherfragrances,andrevealing,suggestiveor dealing with ultimate authority, that should be placed inotherwise non-professional clothing.the front of your employee handbook.Breaks.At Will Language. MoststatesintheSouthandSouthwesthaveno Yourhandbookshouldavoidlanguagethattendstoregulation requiring a work breakcoke, coee, meal, create a contract, such as these examples: smokingorotherwise.Thisisleftstrictlytothe "forcause","annual(salary,etc.)","conditionsofemployerspolicy.SomestatesintheNortheast, employment","continuedemployment","permanentMidwest and Northwest do have such a policy. Please employee", "career", "job security check with your Seay Management consultant to see if your state has this requirement.Reasonable Accommodation for Religious Holidays.Your policy should grant reasonable accommodationSmoking.to the religious needs of employees and applicants, soMany employers completely ban smoking at work and long as this does not create an undue hardship on thethis is clearly the trend. If you do allow smoking, you employer.Theaccommodationisnotrequiredtobeshould designate a smoking area. Also, provide that if convenient for the employeethe standard is that it bean employee objects to someone smoking, that person reasonable. must immediately cease smoking.ReasonableAccommodationforDisabledEmployeesSexual Harassment.and Applicants. It is vital to dene sexual harassment, provide examples Yourpolicyshouldprovideforreasonableand direct a primary and back-up means for employees accommodationtotheknownneedsofdisabledto report allegations of sexual harassment. Do not leave employeesandapplicants,solongasthisdoesnotthis up to the chain of command, because someone create an undue hardship on the employer or create ainthechainmightbetheallegedharasser.Sexual threat to the health and safety of others at work. harassmentpreventiontrainingshouldbeconducted annually.Midwest Drycleaning & Laundry Institutewww.MWDLI.org / 765-969-5745 12\x00'