As a leader, you have a lot to be concerned about. Ensuring that your team is working efficiently, that they are communicating well, and that they’re hitting important targets. But if you neglect to consider their needs, you can end up infringing on their rights as well. Here are a few essential rights you need to ensure that you protect.
Are you doing what you can to keep them safe?
Health and safety might be the average employer or manager’s least favorite words, but it must be taken seriously. If you’re not doing so already, you need to seriously address the risks and help your team avoid them, even if they’re only doing office work. Carry out a safety audit and talk about health risks like pain as a result of sitting too much without breaks, create a safety code for the workplace, and teach your managers to help keep the workplace up to regulatory scratch.
What happens if they are injured on the job?
Sometimes, regardless of how much you try to prevent it, an employee will end up hurt or sick because of their work. You have to ensure that the process of helping them get the compensation they deserve is set up, or you could be dealing with a workers comp lawyer. You are legally required to have workers compensation for your team, so make sure that you do.
Is the workplace a harassment-free environment?
They need to be safe from risks not only to their physical safety but their emotional and mental safety, as well. Creating a bullying, discrimination, and harassment-free environment means taking a serious look at the risks. Consulting with an HR team can help you put together a code of conduct for the whole team, as well as setting up channels by which your employees can report and resolve workplace harassment when it arises. Fail to give them the ability to address personnel problems and that, too, can lead to a lawsuit.
Are you working with expecting employees?
One form of discrimination that often goes overlooked is that of employees who are pregnant. If you in any way penalize a pregnant worker or those who have taken maternity leave, you are discriminating and can be held accountable for it. Set up a process to help pregnant workers, instead. By being prepared and having a script to follow, you’re less likely to make a mistake.
Do they get paid on time?
An employment contract states, among other things, the means and manner by which your team gets paid. You can’t risk being informal about it. They have a right to be paid on time. Instead of relying on your own memory and admin, you should look into payroll software which can help streamline and automate the whole affair.
If you aren’t taking the rights of your employees seriously, it can cost you considerably. You might find yourself paying out in legal costs, as well as dealing with a severe morale problem. Treating your employees right makes them all the more likely to do right by you, too.