Employee handbooks

The employee handbook is not, in itself, a legal requirement, but it is your legal requirement to manage your employees in accordance with current laws and legislation. Which is where the value of the employee handbook lies. If constructed with care it supports your contract of employment. And it lays out the expected requirements of employees against your needs as an employer.

For the majority of small businesses an employee handbook is all they need to communicate to their staff what their rights are and what rights you have as their employer.

That said, it can happen that a business develops specific needs. It might be that regular sickness absence is an issue – in which case you need a sickness absence policy and procedure. Or are you making a transition from small to medium sized business? In such a situation, you’ll have outgrown your current employee handbook.

If this or any of the statements below resonate with you then Go Legal is your go-to virtual HR adviser.