Protection of Personal Employee Information

An area that small business employers, including physicians and dentists, tend to overlook is the protection of personal information. This applies not just to permanent employees, but also temporary workers and job applicants.

In British Columbia, the Personal Information Protection Act mandates that an organization make reasonable security arrangements to prevent unauthorized access, copying, etc.

So payroll files, benefit files and so on should  not be accessible to anyone who can open a file  (virtual or otherwise). In addition, resumes of employees and also those that you receive from job seekers should be retained for a period of at least a year.

Many employers make their hiring decisions and then shred the resumes of those not selected. Those resumes, by law, should be kept for at least one year so that applicants can access them if they wish.  If you make a decision regarding an individual based on personal information that you have (a resume), it must be retained and kept confidential.

Documents containing personal information may be shredded when it is reasonable to do so and they are no longer required for business or legal reasons.

I urge small business employers to make themselves familiar with the requirements of the Personal Protection Act in B.C.

Social Networking in the Office

Blackberries, I-phones, I-pads, Facebook. Today’s modern office is full of potential distractions from work. Even the smallest company or a solo practitioner needs a social networking policy for employees.
Issues that my clients have raised include: the office computer being infected with viruses, having unwelcome popups, time wasted by staff online or on personal devices.
Then, there are problems with confidentiality such as staff using office e-mail addresses for personal use.
It’s important to put office policy down on paper with regard to expectations and have the employee sign off that they have read the guidelines.
You can’t expect to admonish an employee for a breach that they did not know existed!
What should office policy include?
Cell phone use. Are employees allowed to have their phones on in the office, at their desk? Can they answer calls? What about text messages? Texting can consume an inordinate amount of time. I have seen offices where the receptionist is on her personal cell phone while a client/patient is waiting at the desk! Needless to say, it gives a very poor impression of the business or practice.
Some employers request that staff turn off cell phones when in the office. Others allow employees to have the phones on for emergencies only (working parents may need to be contacted by their children’s school for example).
Internet use: do you restrict it or allow unlimited access? Many of my clients allow staff to use the Internet during lunch or a break. Others allow only work related use.
If an employee has their own private office, it can be difficult to monitor how much time they are spending online. However, there is software that tracks what employees are doing on the Internet.
There is a need to be reasonable. Staff do not want to feel that their every move is being watched.
Set clear parameters about which sites are acceptable and which are off limits, when employees can use the Web and their cell phones, Blackberries and I-pads. Make it clear that work e-mail addresses are just that, for work.
Put the policies in writing. Make sure that all employees are aware of them (preferably when they join the company). Be prepared to re-visit the policies and make changes as warranted.

Put it in Writing!

Many employers, particularly small businesses or solo medical practitioners, neglect a fundamental issue when hiring staff and that is to put a basic employment contract down on paper.

For a variety of reasons (time, procrastination, a feeling that it is unnecessary), these employers never set down the basics of the employment contract with a new employee.

A basic employment contract is important for both parties. For the employee, they should know the basic requirements of the job plus compensation, vacation allowance and benefits. Will there be a salary review at three months after a successful evaluation? Do they need to wait a full year before taking any vacation? Putting these kinds of items in writing can avoid miscommunication later on. Employees state that they like receiving a contract or offering letter as they feel it denotes a more professional company or employer.
For the employer, it can stave off legal problems down the road.

It doesn’t even have to be a long drawn out agreement. It can be as simple as a letter welcoming the new employee and containing job title, hours of work, compensation, vacation allowance and any benefits at the very least.

Two areas that are most important are how much notice is required if an employee wants to move on and setting out the office or company policy with regard to using social media in the office (next blog!). What is the company policy with regard to sick days – paid or unpaid?

These days, particularly with more highly skilled positions, it can take several weeks to find a successful replacement. Rather than being left high and dry, ask your employee to give you three or four weeks written notice or longer.

Remember that in British Columbia, under the Employment Standards Act, the employer has to follow certain rules regarding giving an employee notice, but the employee is not under any obligation under the Act, to give an employer notice although common practice is to give two weeks.

Remember too that in your offering letter or contract, you cannot override the Employment Standards Act by, for example, requesting additional working hours or stating that there is no overtime paid.

If you are in doubt, contact an employment lawyer to be sure that you are in compliance.

My suggestion is to put together a Policies and Procedures manual for your office, covering everything from dress code to using the Internet. Then, in your offering letter, you can have the employee sign off on having read the manual.

Put it in writing! You will be glad that you did.

Using an Employment Agency

So you’ve determined that you need a new employee and what your requirements are.

Should you use an employment agency?

There are distinct advantages to using an agency.

First of all, there is the time saving component. Posting an ad yourself and then reviewing the hundreds of resumes (in this economy) that you are likely to get, takes a lot of time.  Just weeding through the resumes with typos and poor grammar, let alone the inappropriate candidates, takes a great deal of valuable time. Lest we forget, time is money!

A good agency will determine what your needs are and supply you with those candidates who they think meet your requirements.

The agency spends the time checking references so they will have done the legwork for you. Always look for two or three employment references.

Character references are nice but they don’t give you a picture of how the employee will perform in the workplace.

The other advantage to using an agency is simply that they often have “inside” information. For example, in the case of our company which has specialized in medical placement for fifteen years, we are frequently aware of “problem” candidates. These may be candidates who we have previously screened out or previous employees of new clients who have asked us to replace them!

You will pay a fee for using an agency, obviously, but in the long run, it can save you time and money. Most agencies also give a replacement guarantee.

Finding a New Employee

So you need a new employee, where do you start? Frequently, I am contacted by employers who seem bewildered by the process and are unsure of where to begin. Perhaps, it is a physician starting a new practice who has never had to hire before or a doctor who needs to replace a long time employee who has moved on or retired.

There is some basic information that I request clients have before I can start down the path to help them.

First of all, define the position. What is the job title? Is is full time or part time? What is the job description for the position?

Determine the working hours. Will it be 9-5 or do you prefer hospital hours 7:30 to 3:30 or 8-4? Will lunch be 30 minutes or an hour? Be sure that you know for your province or state what the minimums are under the Employment Standards Act.  For example, in B.C., under current legislation, you have to give at least a 30 minute meal break after no longer than five hours of continuous work.

Decide what you want to offer for vacation, once again, being mindful of the legal requirements.

What salary are you going to offer? You need to know what the industry norm is. You can ask colleagues or call an employment agency. If you’re a physician, look at one of your busiest colleagues, one who seems to have a very efficiently run office, what is he/she paying their staff? Remember that you get what you pay for.

Are you offering benefits? What about parking or a bus pass?

Once you have determined what the actual job is and what you are willing to offer in a compensation package, then you are ready to start looking!

Next up: use an employment agency or go it alone?