Employee “Bill of Rights”

Employers should have a stated goal to create a framework that ultimately increases the working relationship between their employees and supervisors. Ultimately it will improve productivity but more importantly it may well create a more harmonious work environment. It is a little known fact that there are state and federal guidelines that all employers are required to follow. Let’s put those aside for the moment and concentrate on what I believe is a more common sense approach toward creating a proper working environment for your employees. The list below does not have to be all inclusive. You might want to create your own but in either case just keep in mind that your employees are your greatest asset. Don’t sell them short!

1. Respect-is it really so difficult? Everyone deserves it in the work environment. Watch your tone, attitude, and body language!
2. Listening – listen to your employees. You might learn something.
3. Job description – everyone has a right to know exactly what their job description is. For the most part, people should have clear roles and responsibilities. These need to be in the form of a document that they can access at any time
4. Promotion – people need to know what their next opportunity is, what it looks like, and what responsibilities and skills it may entail.
5. Annual review – every employee must get a formal review at least once a year where they have a more formal opportunity to discuss and understand their responsibilities. Less formal meeting quarterly are very good as well. Discuss both the positives and the negatives.
6. Payment – Be paid on time and in an amount previously negotiated. Do not nickel and dime them especially, when those wages are commission based.
7. Not be in “solitary” – No matter what people tell you, nobody, and I mean nobody likes to work in isolation, without anyone to communicate with, share ideas, sound-board or even just to gripe with. When people work in isolation their morale get’s low, anxiety increases and productivity degrades. The harder and more complex the task, the more prone people are to the negative effects of social isolation. Make it a point to always pair people off on any task or job and look for cases of isolation.
8. Take vacation – employees need time off or they will take unscheduled time off. Give them some vacation time. They need the time away. Make sure they take it.
9. Sick days – have at least 2 or 3. Everybody gets sick from time to time. Don’t get hung up trying to decide if they are really sick. If they feel or think they need the day off and have the time let them have it. When it is gone it’s gone. If they choose to use it unwisely that’s their call.
10. Quit – when they resign let them do so without negativity, hassles, payment delays or other problems. We never like to see an employee leave but when they do we need to make the process as respectful and efficient as possible. The true mark of a company is not in how they say “hello” but how they say “good-bye”
11. Terminations-when the relationship ends by termination, do so in a respectful manner.
12. Do not forget numbers 1-11.