Doing It Better Next Time

So You Lost The Hearing. Now What?
Well, Here's How To Do It Better Next Time.

Employer Handbooks
Gathering Evidence Before The Quit Or Discharge
Presenting Your Evidence
Case Management

Employer Handbooks
What They Should Contain (In General)
Attendance Policies
Non-Compete Agreements (GA)
Temp Agencies (Call In Policies)

'What The Employer's Handbook Should Contain

Every employer should have a handbook explaining their rules and policies. Handbooks should always include:

Expected standards of conduct;
What to do if a problem occurs;
A list of prohibited activities;
The penalties for each rule violation or repeat occurrence;
A statement that the employee has read and understood the handbook;
The employee's signature and the date they signed for it;
A current version available online or on the company intranet.

Suggested Wording For Serious or Repeated Rule Violations

A. "Violation of the company rules below may result in discipline up to and including termination."

Also include one of the two choices below:

This company reserves the right to bypass any and all steps of progressive discipline, as it
determines appropriate, and may terminate an associate for the first infraction.
At any time, Management may skip any level of disciplinary action and proceed directly to termination.

See Also Attendance policies

GA Employee Handbooks-Drafting and Enforcing Sound Procedures and Policies
What to include, and how to enforce.
Scroll down for unemployment issues.

General information on Employee Handbooks (Not Georgia Specific)
Includes all aspects for designing an employee handbook.

Evaluating Your Employee Handbook
Basic tips and common mistakes.

What To Do And Where To Go If There's A Problem
All handbooks should have a clearly defined open door policy. An open door policy explains exactly where to go to when there's a problem.. In such policies there should also be a clearly established chain of command. Having such is instrumental in protecting the company against discrimination and harassment lawsuits. It is also essential in the unemployment context where the claimant quit due to allegations of employer wrongdoing. The reason is that in such cases, the claimant must show there was no choice but to leave the job and become unemployed. Thus, absent a compelling reason, the claimant must follow the command chain and exhaust every option prior to quitting.

Click Here For a Sample Open Door Policy

Employer Handbooks

Sample Open Door Policy With Chain Of Command

OPEN DOOR POLICY (A Restaurant)

We value open communications between our employees and managers. The company is committed to working with our employees to resolve problems quickly and fairly. Our managers are expected to maintain open lines of communication with their staff members. You are encouraged to address any concerns, questions or suggestions with management.

As noted above in the Equal Opportunity Employer policy and in the Policy Against Sexual and Other Unlawful Harassment, issues or complaints about harassment or discrimination must be addressed to the General Manager, or to the Human Resources Manager, Joanne Doe, or Human Resources Coordinator, Jon Smithers, at our headquarters in New York (212) 867-5309.

For all other issues, we ask that you follow the "Chain of Command" so that each level of management has the opportunity to address the issue and is made aware of the situation. If the problem involves your immediate supervisor or manager, you may bring it to the attention of the next level of the Chain of Command. If your concern is not resolved at any level of the Chain of Command, you should bring it to the next level of the Chain of Command. If you have questions of where to bring your concerns, please contact Joanna Doe in Human Resources at (212) 555-1212. Generally, the Chain of Command is structured as follows:

FRONT OF THE HOUSE STAFF	BACK OF THE HOUSE STAFF
1. Department Manager (i.e. Dining Room Manager, Bar Manager, Office Manager, or Sommelier)	1. Sous Chef
2. Assistant General Manager	2. Executive Sous Chef
3. General Manager	3. Chef De Cuisine
4. Director of Operations	4. Director Of Culinary Operations
5. Director Of Human Resources	5. Director Of Human Resources
6. Vice President	6. Vice President

Employer Handbooks

Attendance Policies
Absences and Leave
Tardiness

Employer Handbooks

Tardiness
The Best Policies
The Worst Policies (No Fault)
Time Records

Absences and Leave
The best policy should make allowances for illness and medical events outside the employee's control. However, it should also state that "employees must obtain a doctor's note upon request. Further "all absences not accompanied by the requested doctor's note/documentation will be deemed unexcused."

The handbook should state that "violations of the attendance policy may result in a denial of unemployment benefits."
See 2005 revision of OCGA 34-8-194 (2)(B)(iii)

To ensure accountability, absent employees must always follow set call in procedures. For example: "If you cannot make it to work by your scheduled work time, you must call in at least two hours in advance and speak directly to the designated manager, supervisor or team leader. A voicemail message is unacceptable unless all of the designated contacts are unavailable. Your failure to properly notify will count against your attendance record as a no call no show, even if the absence would otherwise have been excused. This policy cannot be modified without written approval from your designated manager"

Further, there should be specific contact requirements for those on a leave of absence or for those who have been sick for more than a few days. Also be sure to add that "A violation of these rules may result in discipline up to and including termination."

See Combination of Absences and Tardiness

For Shift Schedules That Vary From Day To Day/Week To Week

The Worst Policies for Absences and Tardies

Back To Tardiness

Doctor's Notes
Employees should be asked to produce a doctor's note upon request. Alert your employees that failure to provide the proper documentation can lead to termination. (Those faking an illness would be fired not for being ill but for failing to comply with the policy).

Back To Absences and Leave

No Call No Shows
If an employee knows he/she will be absent, they must call in within x hours prior to their shift. "Your failure to follow these established call in procedures will be deemed a no call no show. X # of consecutive no shows may result in discipline up to and including termination. X # of no call no shows within a rolling X month period may also result in discipline up to and including termination."

The Employee is not to have other's call in on their behalf and must speak to one of the designated individuals directly. Voicemail messages are prohibited.

For Shift Schedules That Vary From Day To Day/Week To Week

Back To Absences and Leave

Tardiness
Tardiness should be defined to include arriving late, failing to clock in on time, leaving early, or taking excessively long breaks. It should also include any type of time violation such as failure to clock in or out. Your policy should state that "employees are tardy when they arrive X or more minutes after their scheduled arrival time or leave X or more minutes before the end of their shift." See Defining Tardiness. See also Combination of Absences and Tardiness.

To ensure accountability, absent or late employees should follow set call in procedures. For example: "If you cannot make it to work by your scheduled work time, you must call in at least two hours in advance and speak directly to the designated manager, supervisor or team leader. A voicemail message is unacceptable unless none of the designated contacts are available. Your failure to properly notify will count against your attendance record, even if the tardy would otherwise have been excused.
This policy cannot be modified without written approval from your designated manager".

For Shift Schedules That Vary From Day To Day/Week To Week

The Worst Policies for Absences and Tardies

Tardiness Includes:

	Unauthorized early departures from work/leaving x or more minutes prior to the end of your shift;
	Arriving x minutes or more past your reporting time;
	Taking excessively long breaks/returning late from your standard x minute break; and
	Failing to clock in and out as required.

Any (four, six, eight) occurrences of the above within a rolling six/twelve month period may result in discipline up to and including termination.

Back To Tardiness

Combination of Absences and Tardiness
Any (four, six, eight) combined occurrences of the above within a rolling six/twelve-month period may result in discipline up to and including termination.

Attendance Policies

For Shift Schedules That Vary, i.e. At Hotels And Restaurants, Etc
To prove there were attendance problems, it must be shown that the claimant was at
fault for missing work. This can be a hard matter to prove, especially when the claimant says he 
swapped shifts with someone else and was not required to be there.

To provide accountability, the employer needs to implement standard policies and STICK TO THEM.

Sample Schedule (To Write on Every Schedule)

THERE ARE TO BE NO CHANGES TO THE SCHEDULE UNLESS AUTHORIZED AND

INITIALED BY (NAME OF EMPLOYEE) AND (Name Of Manager/Supervisor).
NO EXCEPTION!!!!

At Bottom Of Schedule state:

ALL REQUESTS FOR CHANGES MUST BE IN WRITING AND MADE AT LEAST 2 WEEKS PRIOR
TO THE REQUESTED DAY(S) OFF TO EVEN BE CONSIDERED.  NO VERBAL REQUESTS WILL BE 
CONSIDERED. TO BE APPROVED, ALL REQUESTS MUST HAVE EMPLOYEE'S SIGNATURE ON 
ORIGINAL COPY.

The Worst Policy For Absences and Tardies
Never have a "no fault" attendance policy or a policy based on points. Employers love the point system because it eliminates the need to deal with employee excuses. The employer simply notes the infraction, add up the points and proceeds with the discharge. However, at an unemployment hearing, a point system is the worst attendance policy one can have. The reason is because the law always considers why someone was absent.

For example, a no fault policy means nothing when the claimant was legitimately absent due to illness or the illness of a family member. So if the claimant has reached say, a ten point limit, he can still win the case by showing some of these points were unwarranted and due to illness. Thus, a point system invites every incident to be challenged. Worse, it sets the employer up for a fall as they are encouraged not to keep track of points accrued specifically from illness. The same goes with tardiness. Without a record of why the infractions occurred, the claimant can present any number of excuses at the hearing and they will go unchallenged.

Lastly, hearing officers hate the point system and are bound to take it out on employers. One reason is that the point system is too impersonal. Sometimes there are good reasons for attendance problems and a caring employer should mark them down and consider such. Thus, employers who use the point system often appear callous, forgetful or stupid. Secondly, given how often they're challenged, it almost certainly guarantees a longer hearing.

If you're going to use a point system, keep record of:

Each tardy (how late they were and the reason for it)
Each absence (and the reason for it)
The number of tardies compared to the # of absences
The number of points accrued for failing to timely notify the employer of absences (be sure to have a rule about this so you can demonstrate the accrued points were due to events within their control).

Then argue that since many of the points were due to occurrences within the claimant's control, he still should be disqualified under the Totality Of The Circumstances test.

See also Warnings & Record Keeping

Gathering Evidence Before The Discharge
Warnings & Record Keeping
Getting The Employee To Admit Their Misconduct

Getting The Employee To Admit To Misconduct
So your employee was caught stealing straight from the cookie jar, and you fired him on the spot, no questions asked. Bad move. Or, the claimant screams I quit and you allow her to walk away unchallenged. Double Bad Move.

Employers Should Always Ask The Employee about Each Incident and Document Their Answers. This includes even when there is a quit or discharge
When an employee is caught red handed, often the employer will often avoid questioning them. This may be out of compassion to avoid further humiliation or simply that they think. But this couldn't be further from the truth

Asking the obvious can get valuable admissions for later.

The employer should always ask "Why were you late" "Why did you steal the money?" or "Why were you absent". The same goes for why they resigned. This may seem utterly ridiculous at first.You know the employee did it. So why question him about it? The answer is that people will often tell the truth when immediately confronted and unprepared to lie. A person's statement about their own misconduct is a legal admission which can be used against them later at the hearing. The same goes for guilty silence when the normal response would be a denial..

Maximizing Admissions and The # of Witnesses Who Can Testify
Often the claimant has had months to come up with a good story. That's why it's important to get as many admissions as you can before the claimant can think of one. Think of admissions as your star witness. If at the discharge, the claimant was shown the video or tape recording and said nothing, bring that up at the hearing.

Also, an admission is immensely useful when the claimant lies at the hearing and your eyewitness is not there to testify. This is often the case when your main witness has been separated from the company or is otherwise unavailable. At that point, you'll want another person who heard the admission to testify. For this reason, you should always have more than one person in the room when the claimant is asked about his misconduct. The more merrier. as you never know which ones will still be with you by the time of the hearing.

Presenting Your Evidence

For Discharge
See What You Need To Prove (Discharge)
See Types Of Discharge
See Most Common Mistakes

For Quits
See What The Claimant Must Prove (Quits)
and Types Of Quit
See Most Common Mistakes

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Warnings & Record Keeping
Verbal Warnings
Written Warnings
Other Records

Other Records

Signed Orientation And Training Checklists
Employees should be given a checklist to sign after every orientation or training session. The form should say something like "By signing this form I agree I received the training or orientation above and have crossed out any topics that were not covered."

Emails Indicating The employer Knew the Rule or Received The Warning
Warn by email and require the employee to email a confirmation that the message was received. At the hearing, bring any email response showing the claimant either received the warning or otherwise knew of the rule at issue. This could include the claimant's replies to other matters, so long as the email contains the employer's warning or a response showing the claimant received it..

Visual and Audio Evidence Of Neglect or Misconduct
Videotapes can be used to show the person stole the money, neglected to do proper housekeeping or failed to clean up the work site. Videotapes should always have a date/time stamp or have something in the background to indicate when the video was taken. See Presenting Videotape Evidence

Audio tapes are very useful, especially to document messages left on voicemail. They are also helpful to show neglect or misconduct in the call center or customer service setting. See Presenting Audio Tape Evidence

Presenting Videotape Evidence
Be sure to notify the appeals tribunal should in advance so a VCR and monitor can be provided for the hearing. Make a copy of the tape so you'll be able to submit such into evidence.

The witness who presents the videotape should be familiar with the place or person(s) caught on tape. They should also be able to explain what is happening on the tape and why it's important to the case.

For example, if the video's purpose is to show the claimant put the money in the wrong place, the witness should be familiar with proper cash handling procedures. Preferably this witness would also be someone who worked at the claimant's location. In some cases you may need two witnesses, one who is familiar with the cash procedures and one who worked on site with the claimant.

Presenting Audio Tape Evidence
Make a copy of the tape so you'll be able to submit it into evidence. The witness who presents the audiotape should be able to identify the claimant's voice and explain what is happening and why it's important. For example, if the purpose of the tape is to shows the claimant failed to follow a script, the witness should be familiar with the script, the relevant call in training procedures and whether or not this was the claimant's voice. It may be that two witnesses are needed: one to identify the claimant's voice; the other to explain why the claimant fell short of the employer's standards.

Photos (Digital or Non-Digital)
A picture is worth a thousand words, so take a photo. Photos are great for showing property damage or that the claimant failed to do proper housekeeping or clean up. Digital photos should indicate the date and time they were taken. Digital files should be stored on a disk with the date and the claimant's name- just in case the claimant later files for unemployment. At that point you can print the photo on special photographic paper or present it to the hearing officer on disk.

For regular photos, buy a $10 disposable camera with flash. Take your pictures and write down on a log sheet the corresponding number for each picture and what it was you photographed.
For example "9/1/04 Log file for John Smith-Terminated Employee
Picture 12: trash under the bed. Picture 13: uncleaned stain on floor of room 328" Picture 14: same trash different view" (Don't waste your money developing the film unless you know of an upcoming unemployment hearing).

Note: If your disposable has no date/time stamp, in one of your photos hold up today's newspaper so it displays the date. This will be proof of when the pictures were taken. See Presenting Photographs

Presenting Photographs
|Your witness should be someone who either took the photos or who can identify what's in the picture and where and when it was taken. Preferably your witness will have been to the places depicted in your photos.

Verbal Warnings
Use sparingly and give written warnings when necessary. Anything verbal should immediately be followed up in writing. Even if it's just a note to the file, make sure it:

	is dated on or near the time of the event;
	is signed by the person who gave the warning;
	states what was said, the penalty for future infractions and how the employee responded;
	is promptly added to the file;

Written Warnings

Include:

	The dates and reasons for each violation;
	The level of Warning, i.e. 1st, 2nd, or Final, etc.;
	Penalty for future violations;
	Employee's signature or that of a Witness if they refuse to sign;
	Date the employee signed it and/or when the warning was given;
	A space where the employee can disagree and tell their side of the story; (If they disagree at the hearing, ask them why they never filled out this part of the form.)
	The Signature of the Interpreter (See Warning Those With Language Barriers)

Sample Corrective Action Form (Yellow Bold Face Is Only for Attendance)

Attendance Warnings

Warnings Against Excessive Socializing/Websurfing Etc.

See also Warnings & Record Keeping

Attendance Warnings

Include:

	The dates and reasons for each violation;
	The level of Warning, i.e. 1st, 2nd, or Final, etc.;
	Penalty for future violations;
	Employee's signature or that of a Witness if they refuse to sign;
	Date the employee signed it and/or when the warning was given;
	A space where the employee can disagree and tell their side of the story; (If they disagree at the hearing, ask them why they never filled out this part of the form.)

Sample Corrective Action Form (Yellow Bold Face Is Extra And For Attendance Only)

Leave Of Absence Letter

Corrective Action Form

OCCURRENCE UPDATE FORM
(Indicate if 1ST/2ND or Final Written Warning)

EMPLOYEE NAME______________ POSITION_____________

DESCRIPTION

EXCESSIVE TARDINESS/ABSENTEEISM

SUPERVISOR/MANAGER STATEMENT

Mr. Johnson has been late on 9/11/03, 9/25/03 and 10/04/03 due to traffic/transportation problems. He has also failed to present a doctor's note on request for his absence from 10/04-10/06/03. Mr. Johnson is aware that he must report to work no later than 8am and that he must provide a doctor's note for any illness related absences. Mr. Johnson has also been advised that further attendance problems or his failure to comply with the above requirements could result in disciplinary action up to and including termination.

EMPLOYEE'S STATEMENT (CHECK ONE)

__√____ I AGREE WITH THE ABOVE INFORMATION.

_______I DISAGREE WITH THE ABOVE INFORMATION.

REASONS: (ATTACH ADDITIONAL SHEETS IF NECESSARY)
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

STEPS THE EMPLOYEE CAN TAKE TO AVOID FUTURE OCCURRENCE
(TO BE FILLED OUT BY EMPLOYEE)

_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

I HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD THIS FORM AND AGREE TO ABIDE BY COMPANY POLICY

** I also understand that it is my responsibility to advise my manager or the human resources manager if there is a medical reason contributing to my occurrences**

NOTE: Refusing to Sign means the employee does not agree to follow company policy. A refusal to sign is considered immediate grounds for termination.

_________________ _________________
Signature of Employee Date

_________________ _________________
Signature of Supervisor Date

_________________ _________________
Signature of Witness (If employee refuses to sign) Date

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Leave Of Absence Letter
Send a certified letter to all employees who fail to return from medical leave, or who have been absent for a long time. The letter should state exactly what the employee must do to keep their job. Be sure to give a deadline.

Sample Letter:
Mr. Johnson, we understand that you've been released from your doctor and can now report to work. However, we have been unable to reach you for the last two weeks. To remain employed you must do one of the following:

1: Report to work on or before (date).

2: Provide us with a doctor's note stating why you are unable to work and when you will return. If you are unable to work, you must still call Human Resources twice a week at (phone number) and update Mr. or Ms. X of your status. (Don't give more than two names or you'll need more witnesses at the hearing. Don't give just one name as that person may have left the company by the time of the hearing). You must also provide us with a valid phone number and mailing address for both you and your doctor so we can contact you at any time.

Your failure to meet the requirements in paragraph 1. or 2. will result in immediate termination.

Back To Warnings & Record Keeping (Gathering Evidence)

Back To Attendance (Proving Your Case At the Hearing)

Excessive Socializing (Sample Warning)

In the Sample Corrective Action Form (Yellow Bold Face Is Only For Attendance)
replace words under the SUPERVISOR/MANAGER STATEMENT with the following:

The purpose of this memo is to provide _________________ with a final written warning for Excessive Socialization. This includes frequently being away from the desk or work area for an extended period of time for non-work related issues, or using company time to engage in non-work-related issues. (Covers personal emails as well). This also includes actively engaging other employees into non-work related conversations and causing disruption to the work environment. The employee understands that further violations may result in discipline up to and including termination.

Back To Warnings & Record Keeping

Warnings: What If They Refuse To Sign (See Warning By Email)
Warnings should always be signed by the person who received them. This shows proof the claimant was warned and prevents allegations at the hearing to the contrary.

Some employers require all their warnings to be signed for, even if the employee disagrees with them. These employers will often include a statement under the signature line that says "Signing this form means that you agree to follow company policy in the future. It does not necessarily mean you agree with why you were given the warning. Failure to sign the warning is immediate grounds for termination."

Others say "Signing this form does not indicate agreement but only signifies that you've been informed of the action and you have received a copy of this counseling statement."

Back To Warnings & Record Keeping

Temp Agencies

Failure to Call In After Ten Days=Separation
When not on assignment, your failure to contact the temp agency within a ten day period will result in separation. To be considered for more assignments, you must visit the office in person to fill out a new application/ reactivate. Failure to follow these procedures may jeopardize your right to collect unemployment benefits.

Other Rules & Policies

See Temp Agencies