It's really important for managers and supervisors to understand why keeping good records about their employees is so crucial. This helps avoid unnecessary legal troubles that can be expensive and stressful. 

Clear and well-written records have a big impact on different parts of the workplace and how the business runs. One major area they affect is something called the "Just Cause Standard." If you don't document things properly, you might end up losing disputes and arbitration cases, which can cost a lot of money. 

Good documentation also affects how employees are treated fairly on a day-to-day basis. For example, let's say your best employee, John, did something serious like hitting his boss. Normally, this could lead to firing, but maybe you want to give him a warning instead. Proper documentation helps you do that. 

Another thing to consider is that your past practices as a supervisor or manager can affect how you document things. So if, in the past, you let employees slide for doing something like drinking alcohol at lunch, but now you're suspending them for it, that can be a problem. Good documentation helps keep things consistent.

It's essential for all managers to understand how to document things correctly, why it matters, and what can go wrong if you don't do it right. Let's call these ideas the "Five W’s of Workplace Documentation": WHO we document, WHAT we document, WHEN we document, WHERE we document, and WHY we document. The main goal here is to document things well to keep your business running smoothly and avoid paying fines, back pay to employees, or dealing with lawsuits. 

Eric Schirding and I are almost always available to talk through this stuff with you one on one. Or, if you want to hire us to share these tools with your team, we're available for that too. The cost is about $1,000./day. One of the key takeaways will be how documentation affects the "Just Cause standards" and how to do it right.  

Remember this: There are so many different ways to document, like writing things word for word, creating a story, making an outline, or just listing the facts without emotions or opinions. We'll talk about what format to use and where to store these records. We'll also discuss what outsiders can see during a grievance investigation and what information can be accessed during an insurance discovery process. Lastly, we'll get into how to handle disciplinary actions, which can include verbal discussions, written warnings, suspensions, and even termination. It's important to use the right language when documenting these discussions. Just saying that an employee is "going down the wrong road" isn't enough. You need to clearly tell them what they did wrong and what might happen if they don't improve. Avoid including irrelevant details like the color of their shirt or why they did it – contrary to some people's opinions, those things don't make much of an impact when you're in court.. 

We hope this helps you understand why good documentation is so important and how to do it right! 

There is only one type of insurance that can help foot the cost of a claim involving Employment Related matters like wrongful termination, a hostile work environment, discrimination, or wage violations and less than 18% of employers have it. Do you? 

Let us help by evaluating the policy you have, or providing a quote for one if you haven't made the investment. The cost is reasonable, and if you have the misfortune of getting tangled in one of these cases, there's more than a 70% chance it without basis and you'll be glad you have the coverage and the full legal power of an insurance team that really understands the law.  

If you want to share your policy, go here.For a cost estimate and formal proposal, go here.To speak with Eric Schirding, here's a link to his calendar.