• Angeline Long

What do you have in your HR toolbox?

This is the question all companies should be asking themselves. 

If your company doesn’t have a dedicated HR person then its important to make sure you have some key documentation and processes in place. This documentation provides a written record that you can rely on in the case of employees remuneration reviews, employee performance, mediation and disciplinary.  It is also useful should you decide to sell your business.  A future buyer would like to see that you have your Human Resources nailed down and a proper record of your employee information.

Below is a list of some of the documents that will assist you in your business:

Legally compliant Employment Agreements whether its permanent, permanent part-time, casual, fixed term contract or a contractor’s agreement.

Job Descriptions that reflect the true skills, competencies and expectations of the roles in the organisation.  

HR Forms including leave, training and development, Exit interviews and Application Forms

Measurable KPI/objectives that have been agreed initially at the management level and then with the employees. 

A robust recruitment, selection and on boarding process.

A plan for outlining future recruitment needs 

A documented remuneration review process

A standard operating procedure for dealing with Health and Safety 

Regular documented performance appraisals for all employees.  Ideally these would be online however a manual system is better than nothing.

An Employee Handbook outlining policies that govern the way your business operates.  Some examples would be Serious Misconduct, Employment Investigations, Suspension and Disciplinary policy, Company Vehicles, Health and safety to name a few.

Compliance is becoming even more important in businesses today and coupled with the complexity of the new legislation it is major requirement for a business.  It is important to note that Under section 63A of the Employment Relations Act 2000 an employer must provide an employee with a written employment agreement (Individual or Collective), and penalties may be awarded under section 64 if no written employment agreement is provided, up to $10,000 for individuals and $20,000 for companies.  

Whether you have five staff or 500 it is important to do a quick audit of what you have in place and what needs to be reviewed and updated.  It will help you in the long run and give you peace of mind should you need to fall back on it in the future.

Angeline Long, Managing Director, HR Executive Solutions 0275 913 912 www.hrexec.co.nz 


Issue 88 June 2018