This blog post is a discussion based on our video titled “HR FAQs 2022, The Complex Made Easy- Miletti Law!!,” in which Vinny commits himself to standardizing and synthesizing key information to share general knowledge with our unusually motivated® readers. With new companies opening and existing businesses on their road to recovery, especially after COVID-19, many states are increasingly becoming litigious in response to changes seen in diverse areas of U.S. law. For instance, if you happen to live in the cities of very deep blue states such as New York and California, you might be aware that a lot of statutes, laws, and regulations have changed. As a result, we continue receiving numerous FAQs that often reach us through our HR personnel. In this discussion, we have responded to one of these concerns and questions, specifically as it concerns employee handbooks.
That being said, let us boil down to it.
As we have mentioned in past blog posts and videos, an employee handbook acts as a rebuttable presumption through which companies may avoid some liability with their employees. For instance, while it serves to protect the employer, an employee handbook creates a presumption in the courtroom that, in case an employee sues the employer for harassment, discrimination, or retaliation, the employer could confidently say that, based on the handbook, “we attest to a non-harassment, an anti-discrimination, and a non-retaliation policy.”
For this reason, employers may, as a best practice, (1) want to review their handbooks and (2) not wish to keep a similar or generalized handbook for multiple states where they operate. With the changes in many areas of the law, respective cities and states are becoming more and more aggressive. On the one hand, it is crucial to keep revising internal policies included in employee handbooks to ensure they align with the legal requirements in jurisdictions of operation, are up-to-date, and remain compliant with the law.
On the other hand, it may be in the employer’s best interest to keep a separate handbook for every city or state where one operates. Unless you are a multinational company like Amazon (no preference here) that probably has an office in every state, most businesses and companies operate in no more than two states. From a legal perspective, it may not be advisable to keep the same handbook for all if more than two states where an employer operates. Usually, a handbook cites one or more legal provisions concerning a number of provisions and issues, such as wage and hour, at-will employment, pregnancy/lactation/disability accommodations, benefits and compensation, anti-discrimination/anti-harassment/anti-retaliation, and restrictive covenants, as discussed on our recent blogs under the series “Key Workplace Policies and Employee Handbooks.” For example, failure to tailor a handbook specific to the jurisdiction in which employees work and the failure to update handbooks regularly are some of the pitfalls employers should avoid when dealing with employee handbooks.
Well, you do not want to cite every law if you operate in states such as California and New York, but there are different laws for exactly the same issues in these states. For instance, we have often emphasized that New York has stricter labor laws and amplified requirements for employers operating in New York City compared to other counties and the larger state. Arguably, the legal requirements that should be met by a company in New York would not apply to a company in Florida, even if operated by the same employer.
In general, having the same handbook in different states of operation only complicates legal requirements, which, in return, (1) would make an employer lose more money through liabilities while trying to save a few dollars, (2) implies that an employer would have to dig deeper into their pockets to remain compliant, and (3) puts the employer at risk of employee liability as the latter would have a comfortable ground to make and seek unnecessary claims. As such, to be on the safe side of the law, we advise employers to keep separate and customized employee handbooks for every state or city in which they operate.
We hope you are now a few steps ahead in the game. In case you need further clarification regarding this Video, we are just a call away! Accordingly, please feel free to watch it and leave us a comment.
As we continue dropping knowledge bombs every day, stay tuned for more educational videos, inspiring training, & legal advice. In the interim, if there are any questions or comments, please let us know at the Contact Us page!
Always rising above the bar,
Isaac T.,
Legal Writer & Author.