Free Restaurant Employee Manuals for Small Business Owners
Free restaurant employee handbooks from trusted online sources provide the freedom and convenience small restaurant owners need to save money and time running their business. However, there are certain risks in using free restaurant employee manuals without checking whether the generic policies fit the needs of your restaurant business.
Before publishing your employee handbook, consider the following points:
1. Have you consulted an attorney or law firm to verify the contents of your employee handbook?
It seems easier to just download free restaurant employee handbook templates and then cut out the sections you need and reassemble them. However, keeping the text in your employee handbook generic could present a problem down the road.
The added expense of hiring a lawyer is well worth it when you find your business is in jeopardy due to a labor dispute. The words you choose will determine how your employees understand your workplace policies.
Your attorney will also check your policies against those required by your state, as well as additional sources, such as city ordinances and policies set forth by the US FDA regarding food handling and sanitation.
2. Are you practicing employment at will?
At-will employment may seem practical for a small business, but it also leaves you vulnerable to disputes, such as wrongful termination charges. This limitation falls under the implied contract exception, which is one of three exceptions to the employment-at-will rule.
Even if you have hired an employee without a written and signed contract, the presence of a restaurant employee manual translates into a binding contract under the following conditions:
A. When you state that an employee can be fired for “just cause,” you cannot fire any of your restaurant staff without just cause present, which defies the nature of employment at will.
b. When the employee handbook explicitly states standard procedures for termination of employment, and you suddenly fire one of your employees without due process, then he is liable for breach of contract claims.
against Avoid using binding language, such as referring to a job as a “career” or providing promotion and demotion policies, which are not possible in at-will employment.
3. Have you made provisions for cultural competency in your restaurant’s employee handbook?
Most of today’s workplaces are multicultural and multilingual. In recognition of this diversity, your employee handbook, as well as the publications in your restaurant, should be translated into one or two other languages. The most common foreign languages include Spanish and Chinese.
In addition to trilingual translations, your restaurant’s employee handbook should also include provisions for holidays typically observed by other cultures. For example, Halloween may not require time off from work, but Day of the Dead does. Visiting graves and participating in a procession are traditional practices for this special day in November.
Free restaurant employee handbooks are convenient options over buying ready-made handbooks, but before you can use one as your own policy handbook, you’ll need to modify the content to strengthen the document’s legal validity and adhere to to diversity. in the workplace.
