| For
Premium and Premium Plus customers, Graphite provides a HR
Consultation Service. As part of our regular monthly review
in HR e-ssentials Graphite HRM provides you with an insight
into the type of queries we get through this consultation
service.
Q: My staff have e-mail accounts
and internet access through computers they use at work. I
don’t have a policy on this, is it recommended that I put
one in place?
A: An electronic
communication policy is necessary to protect the company in
case of employee misuse or abuse of this equipment. The purpose
of the policy is to define the parameters of use, what is
acceptable and unacceptable, and to enable the company to
take action when employees do not follow procedures.
In many companies each employee has their own personal computer
which often allows them access to both the Internet and e-mail.
While employees may be proficient in the use of the Internet
and e-mails they may not be aware or understand the possible
problems they could realise for either themselves or their
employer through carelessness or misuse of either medium.
By introducing Internet and e-mail policies a company can
educate their employees in their correct use.
This can be achieved by outlining the rules of use in the
organisation’s electronic communication policy and also listing
abuse or misuse of this policy as gross misconduct under the
disciplinary policy and procedure. Then should a situation
arise where an employee is found to have misused the organisation’s
Internet or e-mail system it can be dealt with under the disciplinary
policy and may result in the summary dismissal of the employee.
The company Internet and e-mail usage rules to be outlined
to employees should consider the following:
- Files attached to e-mails may have been created by a
third party and be copyright protected, and therefore employees
need to understand that there may be implications for copying
or forwarding on such attachments.
- As e-mail, and e-mail attachments can carry viruses, the
receipt of certain types of e-mail, and their circulation,
may need to be prohibited.
- Software is readily available which can block employee
access to certain websites to be chosen by an employer.
- The downloading of pirated software by an employee can
result in a vicarious liability claim on an employer and
this practice should be prohibited.
- A defined disclaimer should be attached to every outgoing
e-mail to provide the company with legal protection in relation
to company matters and to distinguish personal from company
views.
- Computer equipment is the property of the organisation
and accordingly, all information, data and messages which
are issued, transmitted, received, stored or contained in
the equipment are the property of the organisation. This
should be made clear to all employees
- The organisation monitors electronic communication usage
- The use of e-mail for business purposes only should be
made clear to all employees and reinforced regularly
- It should be highlighted that e-mails are business communications
and should be phrased in a professional manner ensuring
that spelling and grammar are correct and typing in upper
case is considered impolite in electronic terms.
- E-mails should be short and to the point. Flaming should
be prohibited
- The creation, communication or forwarding of messages
that are defamatory, obscene, sexually orientated, abusive,
threatening, harassing, racially offensive, or which disclose
personal information without authorisation, or which are
otherwise in breach of the organisations policies and guidelines,
are expressly prohibited. Refer to the organisation’s Dignity
and Respect at Work policy.
- Confidential information about the company should not
be sent electronically without express permission
- Prohibit the use of inappropriate websites
- Restrict personal use of the internet to outside of normal
working hours
- Any breach of the procedure should lead to an investigation
and appropriate disciplinary action
To read more about how to establish an Electronic Communication
and Internet Policy, and to see a sample policy, please see
Chapter 3, Data Protection, of Personnel
Policies and Procedures – the Law in Perspective..
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Q: I have been told that I need
to keep attendance records for all my employees or I could
be fined, is that correct?
A: The Organisation
of Working Time Act, 1997, states that employers must hold
records of ‘time worked’ for all employees for a period of
3 years. The reason for this is so that each employer can
show that they have made every effort to ensure their employees
get adequate rest between shifts, on a daily, weekly and monthly
basis. This is a health and safety concern. It is also necessary
to be able to demonstrate that payment was made for all time
worked, holidays and public holidays.
An employer controls working hours, therefore the onus lies
with the employer to prove that employees received their daily
and weekly rest periods and that they did not exceed the 48
hour maximum. However, it should be noted that employees also
have a responsibility to ensure that they do not contravene
the Act.
The Organisation of Working Time (Records) (Prescribed Form
and Exemptions) Regulations, 2001 were introduced by the Minister
in respect of record keeping obligations under the Act. The
Regulations require employers to keep records of the following:
- The number of daily and weekly hours worked by each employee
- Any annual leave or public holiday leave taken, and any
payment to each employee in respect of that leave
- The daily break and rest periods taken by each employee.
- The Regulations require employers to maintain the above
records for each employee which should also contain the
following details:
- The name and address of the employee
- The employee's revenue and social insurance numbers
- A brief statement of the employee's duties. This can
be accompanied by a copy of either the employee's job
classification or a brief job description
- A copy of the employee's contract of employment or
offer letter (whichever meets the provisions of the
Terms of Employment (Information) Act, 1994.
- The days and total hours worked in each week by each
employee
- Records of any days and hours of leave taken (annual
or public holidays) and payment made in these regards
- Records of any additional days pay made to an employee
where the employee was required to work on a public
holiday.
A person who is found guilty under this Act can be subject
to a fine not exceeding €1,904.60. If they have been convicted
and continue to remain in breach of the Act they can be subject
to a further fine of €634.87 for each day this continues.
The new proposed partnership agreement, Towards 2016, proposes
increasing the record keeping and compliance requirement on
employers.
To read more about the Organisation of Working Time Act,
and how to establish a Working Time Policy, please see Chapter
1, Conditions of Employment, of Personnel
Policies and Procedures – the Law in Perspective.
Disclaimer - This is not
a legal service, all suggestions will be based on HR best
practice.
You should seek independent legal advice before making any
decisions.
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