Being a supervisor can sometimes feel like an intimidating task. When done well, an HR-savvy supervisor can contribute to the success of an entire organization. However, when a supervisor is unaware of their responsibilities, it can result in costly legal issues and stressful litigation.
Thankfully, there are company policies and practices that can help supervisors navigate their role and manage employees in a fair and consistent manner. Here are a few that every supervisor must know:
1. Be Aware of Company Policies in the Employee Handbook
Businesses create and implement policies to ensure compliance with employment regulations and corporate ideals. Supervisors must be aware of and enforce these policies, especially when they are written and provided to employees such as in the case of employee handbooks.
If a supervisor is ever unsure how to handle a situation, they should initially seek guidance from the Employee Handbook, which addresses everything from drug testing and holidays to discipline and termination. Employees will expect supervisors to know these policies and follow them as written. A supervisor that fails to follow handbook policies may find themselves on the receiving end of an employee complaint to upper management. It can also result in a legal claim when it involves a policy that was written to ensure compliance with a specific employment regulation.
2. Tracking Time and Overtime for Supervisors
In most companies, supervisors are responsible for tracking employee attendance and approving timesheets, which includes the proper management of meal and rest breaks, and overtime. Setting clear expectations with a team is important when discussing their time. Working off the clock, for example, is not permitted and supervisors must ensure compliance to avoid violation of state and federal law.
When reviewing and approve timesheets, supervisors are responsible for ensuring accuracy. Timesheets can later be used to calculate overtime due to an employee or establish absences for disciplinary reasons. An inaccurate timesheet may make it difficult to terminate an employee for violations of the company’s attendance policy.
3. Performance Management Tips for Supervisors
Supervisors play a critical role in managing employee performance to ensure that company measures of success are achieved. Performance management is a continuous process of monitoring, evaluating, and improving employee performance. Supervisors must clearly communicate expectations and take action when an employee’s performance is deficient or unacceptable.
While performance reviews are a key part of managing performance, feedback should be ongoing and not just limited to these specific conversations. Supervisors should provide regular feedback in everyday interactions, especially when an employee is actively engaging in conduct that the supervisor wants to correct. Offering informal coaching or training is another tool that a supervisor can use to reinforce performance expectations.
Being open and honest helps build trust and engagement with the team. Remember that both positive and negative feedback can be shared. In fact, it’s important to balance both kinds of feedback so that employees are more receptive to constructive criticism. Supervisors that fail to address poor performance or avoiding uncomfortable conversations can lead to employee not knowing that their performance is deficient. This often results in claims of discrimination, especially when an employee does not understand why their employment was terminated.
4. Documentation Best Practices for Supervisors
Documentation, or the process of recording and maintaining written records of important information, actions, decisions, and communications related to work activities, can be essential for keeping track of employee performance, company policies, legal compliance, and any incidents or issues that may arise. Proper documentation helps ensure transparency, accountability, and consistency within the organization.
Supervisors must be mindful of the best practices for properly creating and managing documents, as a great deal of activity in the workplace can be considered documentation. Common types of workplace documentation include emails and correspondence, memos, policies, meeting notes, offer letters, training records, job postings, timesheets, performance reviews, and written notices. All of this documentation can be used later to support or deny that specific conduct occurred, or certain action was taken. Documentation that is vague or subjective (using personal opinions and/or inflammatory language) may result in legal challenges.
The importance of documentation is typically discovered when you need it to discipline or terminate an employee, or to use for defending action that was taken in reference to an employee. Supervisors must document conduct or behavior that violates company policy as close as possible to when the conduct or behavior occurred. The best practice is to ensure that the employee is notified that the behavior violates company policy, the consequences for violating company policy, and expectations for future performance.
5. Avoiding Discrimination and Harassment in the Workplace
Supervisors play a critical role when it comes to enforcement of company policies prohibiting discrimination and harassment in the workplace. Discrimination is the unfair or unequal treatment of an individual or group based on protected characteristics or employee’s protected class status and is prohibited by law. Policies for reporting workplace discrimination and harassment should be included in the employee handbook, and must be followed by all employees.
Supervisors have a duty to report any unwelcome, inappropriate, or offensive behavior that creates a hostile, intimidating, or uncomfortable environment for employees. They are also responsible for taking action to prevent or stop this behavior in the workplace. A supervisor is not allowed to keep this information secret from upper management or leadership that they are required to report to. All supervisors must know the company’s policies for reporting workplace discrimination and whom they must notify of complaints or incidents.
Getting Started
Along with knowing the basics outlined above, supervisors are responsible for creating a safe and productive work environment for employees. However, certain HR situations can be difficult to navigate. Thankfully, Engage PEO is here to help.
Our experienced client service teams, including our HR Consultants (all licensed employment attorneys), can provide guidance. We can also help your organization gain access to health insurance and retirement offerings, learning management tools, applicant tracking technology, and more.
Get in touch with us to learn more.
*This article does not constitute legal advice and does not address state or local law.