Tag: Employee Documentation

The Importance of Employee Documentation From the time an employer hires their first employee, the risk of being sued begins. In most cases, background checks, careful employment decisions, and effective human resources can avoid frivolous litigation but not always. This makes effective preparation for these worst-case scenarios key, and according to employment attorneys, the key to winning these lawsuits is paperwork. For example, one employment attorney encountered a client who only brought in three documents which composed the employee file of a worker who had filed a lawsuit. This included a picture of the front and one of the rear of their driver's license and a picture of the employee's W-4. The employer claimed to have fired the employee for performance issues but had no documentation showing a history of any performance problems. Further, the employer lacked basic paperwork that is crucial to hiring any employee. Here are some problems with this scenario that every employer should take to heart. What About the Form I-9? In order to legally be employed in the U.S., workers must have appropriate permission to work. This means that the worker must either be a U.S. citizen or hold a visa with work permission. It is the employer's responsibility to verify that each and every individual they employ has the right to work, and this means completing Form I-9. Completing this form requires verifying the worker's identity as well as their work authorization. This must be done no matter how familiar you are with the worker and their right to work. The Department of Homeland Security provides a list of documents that are acceptable to prove work authorization, such as a driver's license and birth certificate, among many other combinations. This must be completed within the first three days of a worker's employment. This is required by law and must be completed to avoid serious legal consequences. Performance Concerns Must Be Documented Remember that where a court is concerned, whatever you don't have written down didn't happen. If for any reason, your employee were to challenge any disciplinary action you take, you need documentation that reflects any concerns you had. If you can have the employee sign it, that's great. However, it is not necessary, and it is completely acceptable to simply document that on this date, you informed this employee that their work was poor and in need of improvement. Should you choose to have the employee sign any disciplinary document and they do refuse, simply write down that you presented the document and the employee refused to sign. Documentation Is Critical Prior to Termination Remember that just because a worker's employment is willful doesn't mean that you can always fire them without reason. At-will employment technically means that an employee can be terminated for any reason that isn't illegal, such as because of discrimination. The question is, though, without documentation, how can you prove that your reason was legitimate? The burden may rest on the employee to prove that the reason was illegitimate, but without any documentation, your defense is unlikely to be strong. When a court looks at your reasons for deciding to fire one employee, they will want to know what led you to this decision, particularly if you have multiple employees who are "similarly situated." So, before terminating an employee, make sure your paperwork is ready first. Interested in learning more about Pre-employ's background checks? Talk to Sales today. Source

Tag: Employee Documentation

The Importance of Employee Documentation

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