What to Leave Out of an Employee Handbook

A good HR manual is a valuable document that provides many uses for both small and large companies. It records and communicates official rules and explains policies, benefits and other important information to which employees need to refer from time to time. An HR manual clearly documents what institutional

memory will almost certainly distort over time. But a poorly written or incomplete manual could leave your company open to potential lawsuits. Building a useful HR manual shouldn't be too difficult as long as you pay special attention to sensitive legal topics and avoid documenting policies in the following areas.

1. Overtime restrictions. Wage and hour laws require that overtime be paid for any work that exceeds more than 40 hours per week -- whether or not it is authorized by the employer. Never require that overtime work be authorized in advance.
2. Regulations limiting workers´ rights as parents or potential parents. Pregnant workers must be treated just as you treat other employees. Never require that an employee disclose facts or plans related to pregnancy -- including a pregnancy itself. Once the baby arrives, you will also have to adhere to regulations governing maternity or family leave and related issues.
3. Anti-romance rules. As a rule, unless the nature of a job necessitates it, you should avoid banning office romances. Such bans are difficult to enforce and infringe upon workers' personal freedom.
4. Rules about giving notice. Never require that an employee give notice before quitting. Such a rule might limit your legal right to fire an employee.
5. Rules requiring workers to keep information about their compensation to themselves. Don´t include any rules that prohibit employees from discussing their salaries with one other. Labor laws protect an employee´s right to discuss such work-related issues with other employees.