The staff that you hire at your business can effectively make or break your company. They will be the public face of your business in many situations, and your staff will perform critical functions that will directly relate to the quality of the products or services you offer.
Being an employer in North Carolina means that you have obligations to your staff. You must comply with state and federal regulations regarding pay wages and safety, and you also need to make sure that you comply with all laws about discrimination and other aspects of employment.
Creating an employment contract that every individual you hire must sign is a good way to protect your company from conflict in the future.
Specific work contracts make your expectations clear
It can be difficult for employees to transition to a new job because they may not understand the culture at the new company or exactly what their boss expects. By outlining the basic job responsibilities for a position in your employment contract, you help ensure that everyone you hire knows what you expect of them.
By addressing issues like attendance and tardiness to work performance, job reviews and even dress code, your employment contract can help you avoid potential issues with staff in the future. The contract should also include your requirements for pre-employment and ongoing training for both the skills needed to fulfill the job requirements and the knowledge required to comply with employment laws, such as harassment and diversity training.
Include clauses that will protect your business after employees leave
There are customer lists or chemical equations that your company has that you do not want to fall into the hands of a competitor. Unfortunately, your staff members could very well accept a position with another company in the future, leaving your trade secrets and business practices vulnerable.
Thankfully, you can include clauses in your initial employment contract, as well as any contracts executed when someone receives a transfer or promotion, that prohibit staff members from competing against your business or sharing any secrets they learned while working there. A non-disclosure clause will protect your company’s information from any form of sharing. A non-compete agreement, on the other hand, will prevent a staff member from taking information from your business and either starting their own competing company or securing a job with one of your competitors.
By including these special documents or clauses in your employment contract, you make agreeing to these terms a condition of employment. There could be many other kinds of clauses that will benefit your company if you include them in your employment contracts. The exact contents of the contract should reflect both the unique needs of your business and the individual positions that people accept. The more specific the contracts are, the easier it will be for you to enforce their contents in court later on.