Idea Transcript
(http://www.faceboo (http://twitter.co (http://www
About Us (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/about/) source=followb Advertise (http://www.blrmedia.com/?webSyncID=c4976452-70853c48-1d66-a776d0e6a81c&sessionGUID=94d48945-d7db-2ed09845-b190d2a872c4)
(http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/)
Search …
Stay Informed! Sign up for the HR Daily Advisor Newsletter
Email Address
HR POLICIES & PROCEDURES
Join
FEATURED RESOURCE
New NLRB Handbook Guidelines—Do You Need to Reword Your Policies?
Benefits of a Total Reward Strategy
HR Policies & Procedures (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/category/hr-policies-procedures/) Stephen Bruce, PhD, PHR Monday - April 27, 2015
A recent memo from the General Counsel for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) provides new guidelines regarding the language employers use in their company handbooks. Could your policies require review in order to stand up to scrutiny? BLR® Legal Editor Holly Jones, JD, has the advice you need in the following article. Creation of sound and legally compliant employee handbook policies has been something of a moving target in recent years due to the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) continual review and interpretation of employee rights under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). In a March 18 memo (you can view it in its entirety here (http://apps.nlrb.gov/link/document.aspx/09031d4581b37135)), NLRB General Counsel Richard F. Griffin, Jr. offered some valuable guidance on language employers may—but should not—consider including in their employee handbooks.
(http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/benefitstotal-rewardstrategy/)
Download (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/benefits-
(http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resou total-reward-strategy/)
Let’s Review NLRA Section 7 Rights
It’s easy to think of total rewards as simply “pay and benefits,” but that’s a very limited view for today’s businesses. Why would an employer want to utilize a total rewards strategy? Download this free report and find out. Download this free report now.
First, recall that NLRA Section 7, which applies to both union and nonunion employers, guarantees employees the right not only to bargain collectively, organize, form, join, or assist labor organizations, but also the right to engage in “other concerted activities” for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid and protection. Section 8 of the Act then makes it an unfair labor practice for an employer to “interfere with, restrain, or coerce” employees in their exercise of these rights. The NLRB interprets all parts of the Act broadly; as a result, the seemingly simple language has evolved to protect a variety of employee activity in and out of the workplace. For example, note that “concerted activities” aren’t just limited to unionorganizing activities. Rather, Section 7 grants employees the broad right to communicate about wages, hours, and any other terms and conditions of employment. This communication may occur among coworkers at the water cooler or with other third parties on social media. When reviewing employer policies and practices for compliance with the Act, the NLRB determines whether a rule would have a “chilling effect” on employees’ Section 7 activity. In doing so, the Board determines whether employees would reasonably construe the policy to prohibit or restrict their activity. But, again, the NLRB interprets these terms broadly, and many well-meaning, seemingly neutral policies have been found to have the potential to discourage an employee from participating in protected activity—even if the policy did not actually do so and even if the policy was not actually enforced. Often a rule is found unlawful simply for being ambiguous.
The second HR Playbook from BLR® is here! Enter code HRMAY for 15% off both the print (http://store.blr.com/hr-playbook-2) and download (http://store.blr.com/hr-playbook-download-2) versions of the new guide, Employee Retention and Satisfaction: How to Attract, Retain, and Engage the Best Talent at Your Organization.
Types of Policies to Consider for Review The NLRB’s broad interpretation of Section 7 rights has placed all sorts of employer policies under scrutiny. Though workplace social media policies have been the most notably challenged, in the memo Griffin discusses eight other broad categories of workplace policies that may interfere with Section 7 rights. These policies include those that address or restrict: Confidentiality; Employee conduct toward the company and/or supervisors; Employee conduct toward other employees; Communication or interactions with third parties, including the media and government agencies; Protection of employer logos, copyrights, and trademarks; Photography and recording; When employees may leave work; and Conflicts of interest.
CONNECT WITH US
This list is certainly not exhaustive, as other policies such as at-will statements, arbitration policies, and English-only rules have also been at issue, and there is certainly potential for any workplace policy to run afoul of the broad Section 7 rights, but the list provides a concise review of the most problematic areas for employee handbooks.
(http://www.facebook.com/HRDailyAdvisor) (http://twitter.com/intent/follow? (http://www.linkedin.com/company/b (http://www.youtube.com/user (http://www.pinterest.co (/feed) source=followbutton&variant=1.0&screen_ sub_confirmation=1)
For each of these types of rules, Griffin discusses NLRB precedents for rules that have—and have not—been found compliant. He explains the distinctions between the rules—distinctions that may turn on a single word or phrasing or their context within the handbook as a whole.
Once you have top talent, be sure to retain them! It’s all in the new HR Playbook, Employee Retention and Satisfaction: How to Attract, Retain, and Engage the Best Talent at Your Organization. Save 15% on both print (http://store.blr.com/hrplaybook-2) and download (http://store.blr.com/hr-playbook-download-2) versions when you enter code HRMAY at checkout.
Example Language: Workplace Conduct Rules For example, workplace conduct rules can be a particularly tricky area, as employers certainly need to regulate employee behavior, but doing so within the limitations of Section 7 often requires judicious use of disclaimers, examples, and specificity. In the memo, Griffin demonstrates that a significant problem with conduct rules is that they are often overbroad and can reasonably be interpreted to prohibit criticism of or protest against workplace practices or treatment. Rules that simply prohibit “disrespectful,” “negative,” “inappropriate,” or “rude” behavior will rarely stand unless significant clarification and context is given. The Board found the following language to be unlawful because it was overly broad: “Be respectful to the company, other employees, customers, partners, and competitors.” “Do not make fun of, denigrate, or defame your coworkers, customers, franchisees, suppliers, the Company, or our competitors.” “Be respectful of others and the Company.” No “defamatory, libelous, slanderous, or discriminatory comments about [the Company], its customers and/or competitors, its employees or management.” “Refrain from any action that would harm persons or property or cause damage to the Company’s business or reputation.” “[I]t is important that employees practice caution and discretion when posting content [on social media] that could affect [the Employer’s] business operation or reputation.” Do not make statements “that damage the company or the company’s reputation or that disrupt or damage the company’s business relationships.” “Never engage in behavior that would undermine the reputation of [the Employer], your peers or yourself.” The memo goes on to provide examples of language that were found acceptable. It also further dissects an employee handbook that was found to be unlawful and describes the changes that were negotiated to bring that handbook into compliance with Section 7. We’ll present more on this tomorrow. Jones’s analysis of the new NLRB memo continues in tomorrow’s Advisor, along with a great deal when you order the new HR Playbook, Employee Retention and Satisfaction: How to Attract, Retain, and Engage the Best Talent at Your Organization.
Share Your Comments (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/2015/04/27/new-nlrb-handbook-guidelines-do-youneed-to-reword-your-policies) Share This Article: PRINT (HTTP://HRDAILYADVISOR.BLR.COM/2015/04/27/NEW-NLRB-HANDBOOK-GUIDELINES-DO-YOU-NEED-TOREWORD-YOUR-POLICIES/) Tags: JD (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/tag/jd/)
0 Comments
HR Daily Advisor
Recommend
1
Login
Sort by Best
Share
Start the discussion…
ALSO ON HR DAILY ADVISOR
The Most Outrageous Lies Caught on Résumés 1 comment • 2 months ago
Simon Mikail — Great article, not surprised by what
some people can say and think they'll get away with it. Thanks for sharing.
Eclipse Overshadows Workday, Costs Employers Millions 1 comment • 3 months ago
Don E — Was a great day to build morale and show
employees that their wellbeing and connectivity to the planet was more important than $$$$
3 Strategies for Improving Employee Productivity and Prosperity
U.S. Workplaces are Physically and Emotionally Demanding, New Study Finds
1 comment • 2 months ago
3 comments • 4 months ago
Lena Moss — Thanks for sharing. These strategies are
Robert Gately — You make a persuasive case for
surely effective. You can also add up to the productivity and prosperity by hiring the right …
hiring for job talent.If we want to be sure that all our new hires and employees become long-term …
Subscribe
Add Disqus to your siteAdd DisqusAdd
Privacy
FREE RESOURCES
HR CHALLENGE
Job-Based Pay Methods (http://hrchallenge.blr.com/) (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/benefits-total-reward-
strategy/)
Benefits of a Total Reward Strategy (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/benefits-totalreward-strategy/) It’s easy to think of total rewards as simply “pay and benefits,” but that’s a very limited view for today’s businesses. Why would an employer want to utilize a total rewards strategy? Download this free report and find out. Download this free report now.
What term is used to describe shift, geographic, hazard, and expatriate pay?
A. Base pay B. Incentive pay C. Differentials D. Allowances E. Bonuses Submit Your Answer (http://hrchallenge.blr.com/)
(http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/septemberoctober-2017-
issue/)
September/October 2017 Issue (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/septemberoctober2017-issue/) In this issue of THRIVE HR Magazine, main articles include “7 Hot Tech Trends for HR,” “Is Flextime a Win-Win?” and “Rose-Colored Glasses for a Talent Pool that Is Greater Than Half-Full”
(http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/employee-handbook-
checklist/)
Employee Handbook Checklist (http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/employeehandbook-checklist/) Use this checklist to evaluate your organization’s employee handbook. See how comprehensive your handbook is and perhaps, where it could be improved. Free for a limited time.
Employee Handbook Cookbook
(http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/employee-handbook-
cookbook/)
(http://hrdailyadvisor.blr.com/resource/employeehandbook-cookbook/) An employee handbook is a bit like a home-cooked meal. On the surface, it fills a basic need, whether for sustenance or guidelines. But, with the right recipe, it can also bring people together and foster communication. In this special report, we’re going to help you create the right handbook recipe for your workplace.
HR SOLUTION SHOWCASE Workforce Management
Talent Management
(http://www.kronos.com) Kronos is the global leader in delivering workforce management solutions in the cloud. Tens of thousands of organizations in more than 100 countries — including more than half of the Fortune 1000® — use Kronos to control labor costs, minimize compliance risk, and improve workforce productivity. Learn more about Kronos industry-specific time and attendance, scheduling, absence management, HR and payroll, hiring, and labor analytics applications at www.kronos.com (http://ww.kronos.com)
(http://www.halogensoftware.com/products?source=web&c=MTPM_ADO_HRDA) Halogen, now part of Saba Software, offers a cloud-based talent management suite that puts ongoing, next-generation performance management principles at the center of all talent programs, including learning and development, succession planning, recruiting, and compensation. Halogen's powerful, yet simple-to-use solutions, which also include industry-vertical editions, help organizations win with talent, by aligning their talent and business strategies to deliver exceptional outcomes. For more information, visit: www.halogensoftware.com (http://www.halogensoftware.com/)
Stay Informed! Sign up for the HR Daily Advisor Newsletter
Email Address
Contact Us (http://www.blr.com/about/contact) About Us (http://www.blr.com/about) Advertise (http://www.blrmedia.com/?webSyncID=c4976452-7085-3c48-1d66-a776d0e6a81c&sessionGUID=94d48945-d7db-2ed0-9845-b190d2a872c4) © 2017 BLR®—Business and Legal Resources 100 Winners Circle, Suite 300, Brentwood, TN 37027 800-727-5257 All rights reserved.
Join