Creating and maintaining handbooks and workplace policies. Employee handbooks help to create organizational structure and clarify employer expectations. They also promote legal compliance and communicate legal principles in straightforward language. Handbooks ease some of the pressure on human resources departments by answering common questions as well. However, if drafted improperly, or not consistently enforced, handbooks can create litigation risks by espousing policies and practices inconsistent with the law.

Ensuring lawful hiring practices. Because applicants can make claims for discrimination and other employment law abuses, employers must ensure that hiring practices are stripped of practices that increase the risk of lawsuits, such as asking interview questions that delve into areas of protected class status and bear no relationship to the job at hand, seeking salary history information in locations where it is prohibited, or conducting unlawful background checks. Human resources departments play a key role in hiring and can influence or curb bad behaviors in the recruitment and onboarding processes.

Promoting I-9 compliance and immigration practices. Employers must comply with Form I-9 employment verification and immigration rules, or else risk heavy fines and penalties. Human resources departments are regularly tasked with this compliance issue and must take care to avoid costly mistakes.

Ensuring wage and hour compliance. Properly classifying employees in compliance with Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) exemptions or exceptions is a vital job, which is often delegated to the human resources department. Employers can face legal challenges regarding the misclassification of independent contractors, interns, exempt employees, and other areas if these practices are not properly performed.

Eliminating discrimination and harassment. Legal claims rooted in discrimination or harassment based on protected class status, along with related retaliation claims, are the most common claims employers face. Human resources departments play an important role in preventing these kinds of unlawful behaviors by using appropriate policies, training, and internal investigations.

Accommodating disability and religious needs appropriately. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) require reasonable accommodation of disability and religious observances and needs, respectively. Human resources departments that lack a firm grasp of the circumstances requiring accommodation and the importance of engaging in the interactive process have little chance of promoting workplace compliance.

Offering appropriate leave. Illness, pregnancy, and military service are only some of the lawfully protected reasons for employee leave. Human resources departments bear responsibility for overseeing employee leave and must determine:

Mismanagement of employee leave is a common cause of legal challenges that can be avoided by implementing proper policies and practices.

Ensuring lawful use of social media. With little legal guidance from statutes or the courts and much employer-adverse guidance from the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), it is challenging for employers to understand how they can harness the opportunities social media provides while minimizing associated risks. Human resources departments without a plan of action for social media are far more likely to lead the employer into dangerous legal territory.

Promoting employee health and safety. From Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspections to workplace violence prevention, human resources departments face many challenges in the area of health and safety. Workplace safety and health protocols have taken center stage during the COVID-19 pandemic. Failure to engage in best practices can result in injuries, low morale, workplace inspections, and legal complications.

Protecting trade secrets and confidential information and mitigating against unfair competition. The modern workplace sees more employee turnover, which poses a potential threat to employers' ability to protect their confidential information or trade secrets as well as their competitive advantage. Appropriate policies and practices originating from the human resources department can help mitigate those risks and give employers leverage if those issues give rise to litigation.

Engaging in lawful employee discipline, internal investigations, and employment terminations. Human resources departments are regularly involved with employee discipline and internal investigations. Sometimes employee misconduct or other business necessities or public health emergencies lead to an employment termination, layoff, furlough, or plant closing. There are many ways these practices can expose employers to legal problems. For example, a botched internal investigation may suggest that the employer failed to take internal allegations of discrimination seriously or eliminate the employer's best opportunity to show that it acted legally.

See the collection of jurisdiction-neutral policies and checklists listed in the Employee Handbook Toolkit. For a collection of California resources, see California Employee Handbook Toolkit. For other state-specific resources, see State Employee Handbook Toolkit. For a collection of resources for remote and hybrid employees, see Remote Work Toolkit.

See the collection of policies and documents listed in the Employee Hiring and Orientation Toolkit.

For state-specific resources, see State Employee Hiring and Orientation Toolkit.

For startup specific agreements, see Startup Company Offer Letters, Employment Agreements, and Equity Compensation Toolkit.

See the collection of policies and documents listed in the:

For state-specific resources, see the collection of policies and documents listed in the State Wage and Hour Claims Toolkit.

For state-specific resources, see the collection of policies and documents listed in the State Anti-Discrimination Toolkit.

See the collection of policies and documents listed in the Employee Leave Toolkit.

For state-specific resources, see the collection of policies and documents listed in the State Employee Leave Toolkit.

For more resources on social media generally, see Social Media Usage Toolkit.

See the collection of agreements, policies, and documents in the Restrictive Covenants Toolkit.

For state-specific resources, see the collection of agreements and clauses in the State Restrictive Covenants Toolkit.

For more on investigations, see Conducting Internal Investigations: Addressing Employee Complaints and Compliance Issues Toolkit.

For more on whistleblower programs and anti-retaliation protections, see Whistleblower Toolkit (US).

For state-specific separation and settlement agreements, see Settling State Law Employment Disputes Toolkit.