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Welcome
Welcome to your Instant HR Policies and Procedures Manual v8.0. This manual has been designed especially for Australian small to medium sized businesses that employ, or are about to employ, team members or employees.
This manual contains many Human Resource policies in a range of typical employment areas. They provide both Managers and team members with guidance on what is effective business practice, and how to handle common events such as sick leave. Each of these policies is written in plain English and has been tested in Australian companies to make sure they work.
The actual policies adopted will vary from company to company and will depend on size, number of team members, benefits offered, and other factors. A small family-owned and operated business generally does not require as many written policies as a company with a large, diverse workforce. But regardless of the size or complexity of your business, once you hire your first team member, it's best to take the time to think through the policies for your company and write them down.
We have included a wide variety of company employee policies. Whenever possible, we have provided examples to help you develop your own company employee handbook. Make sure that you understand the policies that you choose for your company. Don't just copy these examples without reviewing them, as they may not be appropriate for all situations.
Industrial Relations Context
Because of the complexity of the Industrial Relations system in Australia, this manual cannot provide you with legal advice as to your specific situation. This manual provides you with general guidance on a range of human resource issues. You need to seek specific advice to ensure your business complies with all relevant State/Federal legislation.
Remember, you need to ensure you are in full compliance with your relevant industrial awards or agreements for each of your team members.
To find out the Industrial Award or Agreement that covers you, contact the Fair Work Ombudsman Infoline on 13 13 94.
Other Legislation
This manual will also help you comply with other pieces of legislation, including anti-discrimination, racial vilification, and workplace bullying.
Workplace Health and Safety
Detailed Workplace Health and Safety policies are not included in this manual, given all the specific legislative requirements that are required for compliance. National Workplace Health and Safety Legislation operates across NSW, Queensland, ACT, NT, Tasmania and South Australia. Victoria and Western Australia retain their own systems.
I recommend you attend a Workplace Health & Safety Officer training program within your state or territory to ensure you are compliant for WHS in your workplace.
Workplace Gender Equity
If your company employs over 100 employees, you must comply with requirements in relation to reporting under the Workplace Gender Equity Act. Visit http://www.wgea.gov.au/ to find the specific reporting requirements.
Australian Privacy Principles
Australian Privacy Principles apply to organisations. This HR Manual only deals with employee privacy and general privacy principles. Visit http://www.oaic.gov.au/ for more information.
To customise your manual
A few tips to get you started:
· Start with a search and replace for the term ABCD and replace it with your company title.
· I have used the terms:
o "team member" - you may choose to replace it with "employee", "staff member" or another term appropriate for your company,
o "Manager" – you may choose to either specifically name a person or replace it with the term "Supervisor" or "Director",
o "Managing Director/CEO" – you may choose to use the term "Manager" or "Owner",
o "Payroll Officer" – you may choose to use the term "Bookkeeper" or "Director" (if you are the one who also does the pays).
o "Workplace Health & Safety Officer" – this is a legally defined role in many jurisdictions, so while the Manager may also perform the role of a WHSO, you need to delineate the tasks clearly.
· The italicised comments in blue are either instructions for you while customising the document, or provide you with alternate procedure sections. Delete the italicised comments and parentheses before distributing the Manual to your team members.
· Add in any company specific details such as your business address, business goals and objectives, business locations and key contacts.
· Review each of the policies to make sure that they reflect your business (e.g.: not all businesses offer staff discount on products).
· Finally, no manual is carved in stone. Remember to schedule in a regular review of every policy and procedure (usually every two years).
A note on language style
This manual has been designed with your team member as the reader. We have deliberately chosen colloquial and easy to understand English terms wherever possible.
In some policies, we have included a section labelled "Managers Guide". These are addressed specifically to a Manager rather than a team member and are designed to give more specific guidance to Managers on "how to do" a process. You may choose to include them in your main manual or put them in a separate "Manager's Manual".
In the creation of this manual I acknowledge the work of the Fair Work Commission, Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, the Department of Human Services, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, the Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, the University of Melbourne, Beyond Blue, Heads Up, the Quality Care Pharmacy Program, and the Australian Stock Exchange.
If there is a policy that you would like to see added to this manual, drop me an email, and I will investigate options for you.
Styles
We have used "styles" in Word to format this manual.
You can change the appearance of your document instantly by editing the properties of the styles.
If you keep using styles, your manual will have a consistent format and look great.
The manual has these styles:
Style / Type / PurposeNormal / Paragraph / Normal paragraphs of text
Heading 1, 2, 3, / Paragraph / Heading levels
List paragraph 1,2 / Paragraph / Bulleted list
Legal / Paragraph / Text such as copyright notices
Title / Paragraph / Book title
Header, Footer / Paragraph / Page headers and footers
TOC 1, 2, 3 / Paragraph / Heading levels in table of contents
Doc or form title / Character / Title of a document, form, act or booklet
Comment / Character / Notes about customising your manual
Formatting notes
In this version of this manual, we have made the following settings. You can change them as required.
· Heading 1 and Heading 2 paragraphs start on a new page.
· The page header is always the same as the current or most recent Heading 1 paragraph.
In the manual, sections may break over pages or spill over only a little into the next page. We have left this as it is because you'll be editing it. When you have finished editing, you can adjust the page breaks to avoid splitting topics in an untidy way.
If you paste text from other word processor documents, this text will bring its own formatting. To make your manual look uniform, apply the styles from the table above. If they still don't look right, try selecting the paragraphs and pressing CTRL+Q and CTRL+SPACE. This removes any format overrides. If you use CTRL+SPACE, you'll need to reapply any Character Styles.
Updating Your Table of Contents
The Table of Contents is automatically generated. Once you have finished making your edits, you can easily update your Table of Contents.
· Go to the References tab of the ribbon at the top of Word (the tabs read File, Home, Insert, etc. across the top).
· In the Table of Contents group, click Update Table.
· Choose to Update Page Numbers Only or Update Entire Table.
· Save your Manual (and remember where you saved it!)
I look forward to hearing of your continued business growth and success.
Regards
Ingrid Moyle
Heart Harmony Communications
Copyright © Heart Harmony Communications 2017
Information in this documentation is the property of Heart Harmony Communications. No part of this documentation can be stored in a retrieval system, reproduced or transmitted in any form of by any means (electronic, photographic or mechanical), recorded, translated, or used to produce derivative works without written permission from Heart Harmony Communications. All Rights Reserved.
Legal Disclaimer
While all attempts have been made to verify information provided in this publication, neither the Author nor the Publisher assumes any responsibility for errors, omissions, or contrary interpretation of the subject matter herein. This publication is not intended for use as a source of legal advice. The Author and Publisher want to stress that the information contained herein may be subject to varying state and/or local laws or regulations. All users are advised to retain competent counsel to determine what state and/or local laws or regulations may apply to the user's particular business. The purchaser or reader of this publication assumes responsibility for the use of these materials and information. Adherence to all applicable laws and regulations, federal, state, and local, governing employment, business practices, advertising, and all other aspects of doing business in Australia or any other jurisdiction is the sole responsibility of the reader. The author and publisher assume no responsibility or liability whatever on behalf of the purchaser or reader of these materials. Any perceived slights of specific people or organisations are unintentional.
ABCD
HR Policies
& Procedures
Manual
5
ABCD HR Policies and Procedures
Chapter 1: Recruitment & Selection
Table of contents
Welcome 1
Industrial Relations Context 1
Other Legislation 2
To customise your manual 2
Table of contents 1
Chapter 1: Recruitment & Selection 12
Position Descriptions 13
Content of Position Descriptions 13
Recruitment and Selection 15
Recruitment 15
Right to Work in Australia 15
Selection 16
After the Decision 17
Pre-Employment Safety Screening – Police Check 18
Pre-Employment Safety Screening – Police Check & Working With Children Check 19
Referee Checks by Other Companies 20
Unsolicited Applications 21
Privacy Provisions 21
Work Experience & Internships 22
Induction 25
Prior to Team Members Commencing 25
Casuals & Contractors 25
Managers Guide to Inductions: 25
Probation 27
Probationary Period 27
Probation Performance Reviews 27
Re-hired Team Members 28
Probation Termination 29
Chapter 2: Conditions of Employment 30
Employment Type 31
Full-time Team Members 31
Part-time Team Members 31
Casual Team Members 31
Contract Team Members 31
Job-Sharing / Permanent Part-time Work 32
Hours of Work & Rosters 33
Attendance & Punctuality 33
Shift Swapping 34
Timesheets / Time Clocks / Hours of Work Records 34
Flexible Working Arrangements 36
Options for Flexible Working Arrangements 36
Compressed Hours of Work 37
Requesting Flexible Working Arrangements 37
Pays & Pay Records 39
Access to Pay Records 43
Privacy of Personnel Files & Pay Records 44
Team Member Privacy 44
Accessing Your Personnel Files & Records 45
Updating Your Personnel Files 46
Privacy & Confidentiality 47
Intellectual Property 49
Outside Employment 50
Leave 51
Annual Leave 51
Cashing Out Annual Leave 51
Personal Leave (Including Sick Leave, Carer’s Leave, etc.) 52
Applying for Leave 52
Study Leave 53
Compassionate Leave 53
Eligible Community Service (Including Jury Duty & Voluntary Emergency Management) 54
Cultural/Ceremonial Leave 54
Leave Without Pay 55
Long-Service Leave 55
Public Holidays 55
Christmas Closedowns 55
Parental Leave 57
Parental Leave (Maternity / Paternity / Adoption leave) 57
Applying for or Varying Parental Leave Applications 57
During Parental Leave 58
Special Maternity Leave 59
Paid Parental Leave 59
Keeping in Touch Days 61
Dad & Partner Pay 62
Pregnancy 64
Advising of Pregnancy 64
Harassment While Pregnant 64
Safety While Pregnant at Work 64
Transfer to a Safe Job 64
Working Until the Birth 65
Return to Work 65
Breastfeeding at Work 66
Family Friendly Provisions 67
Friends & Family Visits 67
Children at The Workplace 67
Reasonable Adjustment 69
How to Request Reasonable Adjustment 70
Transgender Team Members 71
If You Are a Transgender Team Member 71
Discrimination 74
Appearance & Uniforms 75
Uniforms 75
General Appearance & Hygiene 76
Tattoos, Piercings, Brandings & Dermal Implants 76
Staff Discount 78
Car Parking 79
Travel 80
Use of Private Vehicle 80
Travel on behalf of ABCD 80
Termination of Employment 82
Notice by ABCD 83
Notice by the Team Member 83
Voluntary Resignation / Retirement 84
Team Members Exit Procedures 84
Casual Team Members 84
Termination of Probationary Employment 84
Abandonment of Employment 84
Redundancy or Retrenchment 85
Death of Team Members 85
Certificate of Service 86
Chapter 3: Performance, Learning & Development 87
Performance Review 88
Preparing for Your Performance Review: 89
Learning & Development 91
Types of Development 91
Roles and Responsibilities 92
Managers Guide to Learning and Development: 93
Unsatisfactory Work Performance 95
Unsatisfactory Work Processes 96
Dismissal for Unsatisfactory Work Performance (For businesses with less than 15 team members) 97
Managers Guide to Performance Management: 97
Unsatisfactory Work Performance (For businesses with more than 15 team members) 99
Unsatisfactory Work Performance (For businesses with less than 15 team members) 102
Chapter 4: Behaviour & Code of Conduct 104
Code of Conduct 105
Anti-Discrimination 108
Workplace Bullying & Harassment 110
Definition of Workplace Bullying 110
Definition of Sexual Harassment 111
Actions That Are Not Bullying or Harassment 112
Responsibilities of Team Members 112
Responsibilities of Managers 113
Consequences of Breach of Policy 113
Racial Vilification 115
What is Racial Vilification? 115
Consequences of Breach of Policy 116
Alcohol & Drugs 118
Illegal or non-prescription drugs 118
Alcohol and Prescription Medicine 118
Out of Work Hours Consumption 118