An employee handbook is a guide that contains a series of rules, regulation and policies about a company’s operation.
It is used to instill awareness of key policies among the employees and at the same time safeguard the company’s interest, financially and legally.
Often, an employee handbook is given to complement the employment or contract letter, and in a lot of ways, acts as a reference for matters not covered in the agreement contract. Whether the employee will make the employee handbook his good friend for reference is another story.
Generally, an employee handbook is printed out as a small booklet (between 10-30 pages), and upon receiving a copy of it, an employee will normally be asked to sign a statement of acceptance of the terms and conditions. Take note that from the employee’s point of view, this is a very important step and do not just blindly sign the papers without knowing what’s in store for you.
The last thing you want to happen is being dragged to court by your very own employer for the wrongdoing in your parts, and was already covered on a document you already signed.
Some of the important topics generally covered in an employee handbook may include usage of company property, confidentiality and proprietary of information, dress code, smoking policy, employment classification, sexual harassment, performance review, misconduct, safety and health regulations, work hours, maternity/paternity leaves, employee assistance program, conflict of interest and disciplinary procedures.
A good sample of an employee handbook is give by Florida Home Business Association, FHBA. Click here to download the sample handbook (in Word format).
Other posts you may want to read:
- Sexual Harassment Course May be Made Compulsory
- Sexual Harassment in Malaysia Employment Act Soon
- Sexual Harassment: Women in Contract Job More Prone
- Malaysian Labour Laws Handbook
- Resigning from job – get it right
- Sexual Harrassment in the Workplace
- Idiot’s Guide to Constructive Dismissal
- 6 Key Points in Employment Letter
Author's bio: Zul is the founder and principal contributor for the SKOR Career blog. He is the author of two books, The Malaysian Job Seeker's Dilemma and Buat Duit Tanpa Kerja Makan Gaji (How to Make Money Without a Job), available in major book stores nationwide. You can reach him at zulkiflimusa[at]gmail.com.
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6 comments ↓
Hi,
I would like to know whether each employee (under Malaysia law) is entitle for hospitalisation leave on top of the 14days sick leave per annum? If yes, what is the min. hospitalisation leave per year? Any guidelines on this?
Thanks
Reply
Celeste reply on November 17th, 2009:
Employees are entitled to paid sick leave, where no hospitalization is necessary,for 14 days per year if the worker has less than 2 years’ service, 18 days if his service is between 2 and 5 years, and 22 days for those who have more than 5 year’s service. When an employee needs to be hospitalized, he can take up to 60 days sick leave per year.
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Hi,
l would like to know, is the employees are entitled to paid sick leave, Are we entitled to claim back our Medical fees from company, is company don’t have panel doctor?
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Hi,
I would like to know is that alright for a company do not provide employee handbook for their employee?
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Is there a limit for the OT claim for a non-executive as a labor law limit to RM1500.00 worker have to be paid and OT for the extra hours of work more than 8 hrs. What is this worker earning RM1800.00 per month and he is a skill worker and not an exempt staff.
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When an employee reaches his retirement age, and the company is willing to extend his service. Does he need to observe a cooling off period of one month and is he entitle to receive the same terms and benefits that he enjoyed before his retirement.
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