policy enforcement

PSRHR

We have policies in our handbook that over time have come to be overlooked. As our company has grown we have come to realize the importance, again, of the policies and want to begin enforcing them again.

I am afraid of unfair labor practices if one employee gets disciplined for a policy violation that just last week another employee got away with.

What is the protocol here?

Should I post notification of policies that from such a date will be enforced?
How long should the notification period be?

Don D

How serious is the problem? If a majority of your policies and procedures have not been followed, you have a real can of worms on your hands. If you have a couple of policies that you want to reinforce or begin paying attention to, I would handle it in a staff meeting, simply stating that the policies shown on page 16b will be enforced, regardless of their application in the past. I think to put out a memo, thereby creating a permanent record of your laxity, will not bode well for you in an administrative hearing of any sort. On the other hand, though, you could address it in a memo without saying you have ignored your own policies, like this: The purpose of this memo is to (clarify or restate) the company's position on x, y, and z as follows. Then detail the work rule, policy or behavior and the consequence of not following it. Would this work for you?

System

Are the handbooks issued to all new hires? Do they sign for them? Don's idea about the memo is great. We have the same problem, only it goes a bit deeper: we do not have a handbook! There are policies floating around out there, but they have not been distributed to everyone or acknowledged by employee signature. Please let us know how you handle this. I'm open to suggestions!