There is now no doubt that many organisations are legally exposed by not properly defining policies and procedures against which employees can be managed. It is a requirement under law and just good practice that policies and related procedures are in place and available for all staff to review and reference as required.
Should you find yourself in the unfortunate position of having to defend yourself against an alleged discrimination or unfair dismissal claim, you will find that the Staff Handbook and its proper application is indispensible in helping you defend yourself and limit your liability.
The P&Ps are typically contained in the Staff Handbook specifying the organisation’s policies regarding a range of employee related matters such as terminations, grievance resolution, discipline mechanisms, absenteeism, leave, OH&S, WorkCover etc. A lack of clarity in these areas can be a legal minefield for all organisations; large or small.
Typically, the executive in small to medium firms are far too busy to bother themselves with the mundane aspects of the ‘Staff Handbook’ and in so doing are unwittingly leaving themselves exposed.
We can't recommend strongly enough that you ensure your policies and procedures handbook is up to date and made available to all employees.
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This electAssociates newsblog aims at providing you the small business owner with information that will assist in better understanding Australian workplace laws; your rights and responsibilities, how they affect you and, what you should do to ensure compliance.
