Employee handbook - examples of what the staff handbook must contain

Employee handbook

It can be an advantage for your company to draw up a staff handbook that sets out guidelines and important information that apply in your workplace. The personnel handbook can, among other things, contain the company's alcohol and smoking policy.

In this article, we will make you aware of why it might be a good idea to prepare a staff handbook, as well as suggestions for what your staff handbook can include.

What is a staff handbook?

A staff handbook can be a document, booklet, folder or a page on the workplace's intranet that provides essential information and rules in your organisation.

The personnel handbook is thus an information catalogue with guidelines that are established by the company as part of management law. A personnel handbook is, among other things, applicable when new employees have to learn more about the workplace and its culture and can therefore be included in the onboarding process.

It is not a requirement to write a personnel handbook, but it can be a good idea, as it can provide a solid, common understanding of the company.

The personnel handbook is also called an employee handbook.

Employee handbook template

The staff handbook typically includes supplementary rules and rights to the employee's employment contract. Examples of topics that can be described in the employee handbook can be:

• Alcohol policy: Here, the company can, among other things, brush up on attitudes to alcohol in the workplace. The alcohol policy can also deal with the workplace's offers and support in connection with a treatment course for employees who have an alcohol addiction. If you would like to read more about alcohol policy in the workplace, you can benefit from reading this article (link)
• Smoking policy: It is a legal requirement that all public and private workplaces must draw up a written smoking policy that, for example, clarifies where employees can smoke or whether there is a total smoking ban during working hours. You can read more about the smoking act and smoking policy here
• Working environment: In the personnel handbook there may be guidelines, for example, how hot or how cold it must be in the office, the maximum weight an employee can lift, or how the workplace handles bullying or harassment
• Management of illness: Here you can, for example, summarise which rules you have in relation to reporting sickness. This section can, among other things, describe how often the employer must contact the employee who has called in sick and what is expected of the employee when calling in sick
• IT policy: An IT policy can explain which rules apply to the use of mobile phones and social media during working hours. The IT policy can also review rules about whether the employee may take their work computer home or use it elsewhere than in the office

• "Feriefridage": If employees are entitled to holiday days off, then this can be advantageously described in the employee handbook. The Danish phenomena "Feriefridage" are paid days off in addition to the mandatory 5 weeks of holiday determined by the Holiday Act. You can read more about the Holiday Act here
• Overtime: The personnel handbook can review guidelines regarding overtime. This could be, for example, allowances and how long in advance the company endeavours to notify overtime
• Paternity: The Maternity Act and the Civil Service Act contain rules that define how the employees must spend their maternity leave and how much pay the employees are entitled to during a period of maternity leave. It may also appear in the employee handbook if the employees are entitled to more pay than what is determined by law. If you would like to learn more about the Danish Salaried Employees Act, you can read this article

You can use the following structure:

1. Front page: Here you can set up a front page with the company's name, logo, address and VAT number
2. Introduction: In the introduction you can, for example, explain the purpose of the personnel handbook
3. Rules and guidelines: In this section you can formulate all rules and guidelines that apply to your company
4. End page: On the end page, you can end the staff handbook with an illustration or a short summary

Is it a legal requirement to have a staff handbook?

As previously mentioned, it is not a requirement to prepare an employee handbook. Thus, it is up to the employer or the management at the workplace to assess whether it is appropriate to prepare a personnel handbook. However, it can be an advantage to have a staff handbook that summarises rules and guidelines, which can contribute to greater cohesion in the organisation.

Violation of the rules in the employee handbook

What happens if an employee violates the rules in the employee handbook?

The employee handbook is, like the employment contract, binding. Therefore, the employees must comply with the rules and guidelines that appear in the staff handbook. In the event that an employee violates the rules in the staff handbook, they may at worst be dismissed.

But that should be avoided, so what can you do to create: