When I first started in human resources, back when we were called personnel, my director tasked me with updating our twenty-five-page, 5 ½ x 8 ½ inch employee handbook. Fast forward to today, and I’ve seen these handbooks balloon to over seventy-five pages, 8 ½ x 11 inches. As part of my consulting practice, I’ve collected at least fifty of them, earning me the title of handbook guru among my colleagues at MPTHRM.
These handbooks come from all sorts of companies, big and small, for-profit and not-for-profit. Many are churned out by law firms using the same dry, legalistic language you could download from an HR website for free. While updating these handbooks helps keep the lights on, nothing has changed in the Employee handbook world since I started in HR. They’ve just grown longer and more tedious.
We’re often told that Employee Handbooks must read like government manuals because that’s what the law requires. But there’s no legal mandate to write the dreck that fills most handbooks. Yes, employers need to follow the laws, but writing in “lawyer speak” is grotesque and ineffective. Most handbooks are written at a college reading level, while the general population reads at a much lower level.
If your company gets sued and the case revolves around the Employee Handbook, you’d better hope I don’t walk into the room as the expert witness for the plaintiff. If I do, you’re in trouble. Employees are often given hundreds of pages of text at new employee orientation, including the Employee Handbook, and asked to sign a form saying they’ve read and understood it. It’s unlikely they could have read it all during the orientation, so that signature page won’t save you in court.
The handbook was most likely never referenced again during the employee’s tenure. Now that the employee is suing, you pull out the signature form and claim they understood and agreed with the handbook’s contents. Good luck proving that.
You’ll have to explain why you communicate with your customers in simple, clear language but choose archaic language for the only document meant to help your employees understand their obligations. Get ready to write a big check to the plaintiff if your defense relies on an unreadable handbook. The world is changing, and there’s an increasing expectation that we treat employees fairly. The language in most handbooks is anything but fair to non-lawyers.
Employee Handbooks are stuck in the past. They’re not only a waste of time and a weak defense against employment-law claims but also insulting and off-putting to your team. If you have one chance to give your employees a book about their relationship with your company, why fill it with obnoxious warnings?
The fifty handbooks I own are full of warnings. Some list forty ways to get fired, like smacking someone or stealing paperclips. Why not list everything you could do to get fired? The handbook would be infinitely long. We could get creative and include things like getting fired for speaking only Klingon at work or hopping from office to office on one foot. The whole notion of listing “Ways to get fired” in a handbook is ridiculous.
The reason handbooks are so vile is that they come from an era when employees wouldn’t react to ugly, us-versus-them language in an official document. The employment deal was much better for employees back then. People were more loyal to their employers and vice versa.
Now, people are waking up. They ask their managers and HR, “Why is the Employee Handbook written as though the company doesn’t trust us? You hired us!”
I don’t want you to revise your Employee Handbook. As a cultural vehicle, the traditional handbook format is too far gone. Your best bet is to throw it out and start over. Your CEO can address employees on the first page or two, then pass the mic to someone else. It doesn’t have to be the head of HR. Your front-desk receptionist could be the voice of your handbook. Let different employees write different sections.
Shift the focus from “Don’t you dare misbehave!” to “Here’s what we think you’ll find helpful as a new employee.” One person can talk about the dress code in general terms, not in fussy detail. Another can discuss the company’s commitment to equal employment opportunity.
Most handbooks are accusatory, like the signs in fitting rooms that say, “Shoplifters Will Be Prosecuted.” Nice message while I’m trying on jeans! The handbook should go in the opposite direction, talking about your commitment to non-criminals rather than threats toward the bad guys.
The rest of the handbook—maybe 25 pages total—should be like the guidebook you find in a hotel room. It should be readable, friendly, and warm. What a relief that will be to your employees! You can use your new handbook as a recruiting and training tool. Update it regularly with fun and clever additions, like a crossword puzzle or doodle frames. Have fun with it.
We’re in a new era. We’re building our Human Workplaces together. Tell your employment lawyers to back off and let you write the handbook your employees want to read. Enlist creative people from around your company to collaborate on the project. This is a great project for the new year. Grow your Team Mojo and replace your tired, old-school handbook at the same time!
To learn more about how My Part-Time HR Manager can help you update your employee handbook, email us at [email protected].
