2023 Drafting employee handbooks

Recording available after original program date, 6/2/2023.

Employee handbooks define the relationship of employer and employee for most employees.  These handbooks establish leave policies, polices for working from home, sick leave, and grounds for dismissal. They also help ensure the protection of employer trade secrets.  In a highly interconnected age, they establish policies for the use of smartphones, tablets, and other devices on and for the job. If a handbook is carefully planned and drafted, it provides for a stable workplace, reducing the risk of employer liability.The absence of a handbook can lead to just the opposite – a workplace with ad hoc policies and abounding risk.  This program will provide you with a practical guide to drafting employee handbooks.

•    Essential elements of employee handbooks
•    Work from home policies and protections
•    Ensuring handbooks are not enforceable contracts and are subject to change by employers
•    Compliance with EEO laws, including the ADA, FMLA and others
•    Prohibition of discrimination, harassment, and other unlawful conduct
•    Defining workplace policies for personal smartphones, tablets, and other devices
•    Time off, leave of absence, and discipline and dismissal procedures

Note: This material qualifies for self-study credit only. Pursuant to Regulation 15.04.5, a lawyer may receive up to six hours of self-study credit in a reporting year. Self-study programs do not qualify for ethics, elimination of bias or Kansas credit.