Holiday Safety Tips

The holiday season will be in full swing following the day after Thanksgiving. We’ve officially entered the season of shopping and at times arriving home after dark. As you set out to shop, take a few moments to consider some basic safety rules:

• Park as close as possible to the store or entrance to the mall and in well-lighted areas.
• Lady shoppers: Please have complete control of your purse at all times not leaving it on a counter or bathroom floor. Don’t walk around with an open purse. You leave yourself open to become a target.
• Male shoppers should keep their wallets in a front pocket.
• Try to make arrangements with a friend to shop together. You’re less likely to be victimized when in twos or a group.
• As you leave the shopping center toward your car do so cautiously always be aware of your surroundings. If you feel uneasy, return back to the mall, and have security walk with you to your vehicle.
• When returning home, take notice of your surroundings before getting out of your vehicle. If you notice anything suspicious, pull out of your driveway, and call 911.
• When getting in/out of your vehicle always have your keys in hand and ready.

We urge you to take precautions this holiday shopping season. The key to your personal safety is your own vigilance. All of us at Vinson Guard Service want you to enjoy the Holiday Season and all the Joy and Festivities that go along with it.

Happy Holidays!

Employee Handbooks – Protecting A Valuable Company Asset

Article Written by: Christina Kotowski (San Francisco)
Fisher & Phillips, LLP Attorneys at Law, Labor Letter, March 2007
Permission granted for use in Vinson Security Briefs

In our last newsletter, Part 1 of this series addressed the importance of the Employee Handbook and gave examples of key policies that should be included such as, equal employment opportunity/ nondiscrimination; policy against harassment; at-will employment; leaves of absence to name a few. Part 2 provides tips and points to consider when putting the handbook together.

Part 2 of 2

The Goldilocks Handbook: Not Too Loose.  Not Too Tight. Just Right.
Define terms and pay attention to how different policies in the handbook interact with one another.  Does your company offer paid holidays for all employees, or only full-time employees? If your organization has an introductory or probationary period for new employees, are they eligible for all of the benefits described in the handbook, or only some of them?  If so, which ones?

Explain limitations or policies and benefits clearly.  For example, a flat statement that all employees are entitled to a six-month leave of absence for personal reasons could result in an employee demanding personal leave to serve a jail sentence or start up a competing business, unless you reserve the right to grant or deny requests for personal leave in your sole discretion. (Stranger things have happened.)

More commonly, ambiguities in leave policies raise questions about whether employer-provided leave runs concurrently with state or federally-mandated leave, or is in addition to such leave.  That can create uncertainty about when an absent employee must return to work or face termination.

In other cases, too-definite statements can cause problems. “The company strives to evaluate each employee’s performance annually” is preferable to “The company will evaluate each employee’s performance on July 1st each year.”  The first statement expresses your intention to evaluate employee performance regularly. The second statement is a definite promise that could form the basis of a breach of contract claim if – as sometimes happens – a harried manager is late in evaluating employees or skips the process altogether to avoid dealing with a difficult employee.

Be particularly careful when discussing discipline and termination, and always include discretionary language to allow serious or unusual situations to be treated on a case-by-case basis.  A policy that requires strict progressive discipline in all circumstances could put you in the position of having to give a verbal warning for flagrant offense, when you really need to terminate the employee.  Stealing trade secrets is not the same as being chronically late for work, and should not be treated the same.

As a practical matter, employers want to keep good employees and will seldom terminate an employee without a compelling reason.  But including a statement such as “Employees will only be terminated for good cause,” in an employee handbook hamstrings your ability to terminate an employee except in the most egregious circumstances.  Even worse, you will not get to decide what constitutes “good cause” – a jury will.  Don’t set your company up for “wrongful termination” or “breach of employment contract” claims by being careless.  This is one area where an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Keep in mind that the policies in the employee handbook should reflect the company’s practices, and vice versa. A beautifully-written employee handbook that is widely ignored or completely out of date is worse than no handbook at all.

How Often Should The Handbook Be Updated?
Ideally, a company’s employee handbook should be reviewed and updated annually.  At a minimum, review the handbook at least every two years.  Employment laws change frequently, especially at the state level, and policies that were perfectly fine several years ago may be incomplete or problematic today.

If your company has grown rapidly, check to see whether the company is subject to new employment laws based on its current size. For example, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act applies to employers with 15 or more employees, but the federal Family and Medical Leave Act only applies to employers with 50 or more employees.  A merger or the acquisition of another business unit is also a good time to review the employee handbook(s) and harmonize policies across groups.

Can A Handbook Be Made Available Online, Rather Than In Hard Copy?
Sure. A significant number of employers are moving away from issuing employee handbooks in paper format, preferring instead to make their employee handbook available electronically (e.g., on the company’s intranet). Employees have ready access to the employer’s current policies whenever they need them, and the company avoids the expense and hassle of distributing paper documents that may go out of date quickly.

But if your company opts for an online employee handbook, remind employees periodically that the information is available online and make sure that every employee has access to a company computer. If they don’t, make hard copy handbooks available as a supplement.

Other tips:

• Be sure to include a statement in the handbook that employment with the company is on an at-will basis. (This does not apply to unionized workforces, which are governed by the applicable collective bargaining agreement.)
• Have every employee sign and date an acknowledgment of receipt of the employee handbook (or an acknowledgment that the handbook is available electronically) and keep this acknowledgment in the employee’s personnel file.
• Resist the urge to put everything but the kitchen sink in the employee handbook. Instructions on how to use the voicemail system, lists of approved outside vendors and reminders to refill the copier with paper and turn off the coffee pot at night do not belong here.
• If you are a multistate employer, do not assume that a “one-size-fits-all” handbook can be uniformly applied to all employees in every state. In fact, you’re better off assuming the opposite. For example, while “use-it-or-lose-it” vacation policies are common in many states, they are unlawful in California, Massachusetts, and elsewhere. Regulations on payroll practices and permissible deductions also vary widely.
• When updating the employee handbook, maintain copies of the superseded policies for a period of time (three to five years). This is particularly critical for on-line employee handbooks-print out a copy of the old policy, or move it to an “archives” folder for safekeeping. In a lawsuit, your attorneys will need to see the handbooks and policies that existed at the time relevant to the lawsuit, not necessarily the current versions.
• When in doubt, seek advice.  Attorneys can only counsel about specific laws and give practical advice about policies that have worked well (or poorly) in other situations.

The Last Word
Think of reviewing your employee handbook as an oil change for your car or rebalancing your retirement portfolio – a small but necessary step to keep your company on track.

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Top Ten Ways to Hold a Company Party

There is always a risk involved in holding any company-sponsored function. Serving alcohol compounds the problems. According to a recent study, 36% of employers report behavior problems at their most recent company party. These problems involved everything from excessive drinking to off-color jokes to sexual advances to fist fights.

As a result, about 30% of employers now hold alcohol-free parties. Since most employers still want to hold holiday parties, you can greatly reduce your legal liability by observing as many of the following recommendations as possible:

1. If possible, don’t serve alcohol. This is easier to do if you simply have a catered lunch at the company’s office.
2. Invite spouses and significant others so that there will be someone there to help keep an eye on your employees and, if necessary, get hem home safely.
3. Always serve food if you serve alcohol, and always have plenty of non-alcoholic beverages available.
4. If your party is a dinner, consider serving only wine or beer (plus non-alcoholic alternatives) with the meal.
5. If you do serve alcohol, do not have “open bar” where employees can drink as much as they want. Instead have a cash bar or use a ticket system to limit the number of drinks. Close the bar at least an hour before you plan to end the party. Switch to coffee and soft drinks from there on.
6. Let your managers know that they will be considered to be “on duty” at the party. They should be instructed to keep an eye on their subordinates to ensure they do not drink too much. Instruct managers that they are not to attend any “post party” parties.
7. Consumption of alcohol lowers inhibitions, and impairs judgment. This can result in employees saying and doing things that they would not ordinarily do. Remind employees that, while you encourage everyone to have a good time, your company’s normal workplace standards of conduct will be in force at the party and misconduct at or after the party can result in disciplinary action.
8. Hire professional bartenders (don’t use supervisors!) and instruct them to report anyone who they feel has had too much. Ensure that bartenders require positive identification from guests who do not appear to be substantially over 21.
9. Arrange for no-cost taxi service for any employee who feels that he or she should not drive home. At management’s discretion, be prepared to provide hotel rooms for intoxicated employees.
10. Never, never, never hang mistletoe! Yep, we’re not kidding. Take a look at number 4 again, and you’ll see why.

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FACT:  
The most common time for a bank robbery is Friday, between 9 and 11 a.m. The least likely time is Wednesday, between 3 and 6 p.m.

ID Theft Still Concern Amid Economic Slowdown

As the Red Flag deadline draws near for financial institutions to develop identity theft protection programs, the results of a new consumer survey conducted by Harris Interactive for Secure Identity Systems found that more than half of bank customers worried about the current state of their bank are concerned that their money and identity are not safe.

According to the survey, bank customers with concerns regarding financial institutions are more worried about identity theft than other banking issues, such as bank fees or financial reimbursement if their bank fails.

Read the entire article...

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QUOTE: "As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them." - John Fitzgerald Kennedy