Some people don't like having things in writing because they think it binds them to an agreement to which they don't want to be held. And, in fact, in many cases they are right.

There are a few times when communicating your standards of behavior or policies is natural:

Choosing to communicate your work policies and expectations orally has several advantages:

Computers are crucial pieces of equipment for many businesses. But what happens when employees begin doing personal business on these machines?

Due to the popularity of cell phones, and if there's a telephone on or near your employee's desk or workstation, personal calls will be made and received, unless you expressly forbid it and you monitor the phones constantly. Most employers do not go to that extreme when setting up guidelines for personal calls and personal use of the telephone.

Having work rules means nothing unless employees know that the rules exist and understand them clearly. Communicating your policies or standards is important not only because it helps employees understand the rules, but documented communication of those rules makes it easier to enforce them, if necessary.

While usage of certain company equipment such as fax and copy machines doesn't present the same sort of problems as computer usage, there are still significant reasons to try to control this behavior. Paper costs for copy machines can add up. The maintenance of these machines, in particular, is also related to usage. Tying up equipment so that clients' or customers' work can't get done can also be a problem. Letting an employee make 500 copies of a flyer for a personal event might end up costing more than you think!

Employees need different kinds of equipment, usually provided by the business, to accomplish their work. That equipment may consist of a computer, a copy machine, a phone, tools, or even a vehicle. Problems with equipment can arise when employees use the business's equipment for personal purposes.

A noncompete agreement is either a separate agreement or a clause in an employment contract that prohibits an employee from working in a related business in your area for a certain length of time. Noncompete agreements are used to prevent an employee from using your business's confidential information.

Whether you need a confidentiality policy will depend upon what type of information you feel you need to protect. Some specific items that can be protected by a confidentiality clause or agreement are:

The type of information that you're trying to keep secret, and how many employees have access to it, will play a role in deciding how you choose to handle confidentiality issues.

Some employers have a hard time knowing what they should consider secret. It's hard to control employees' access to information and equipment until you know what you're trying to protect.

The majority of small businesses probably don't need a policy addressing employees' access to and dissemination of confidential information or trade secrets. However, if your business has spent a lot of time and effort developing its customer lists, highly specialized operating procedures, or some revolutionary technology or product and you want to protect your secrets from possible competitors, you may consider some kind of policy to address the matter.

If you decide to have a moonlighting policy, it doesn't necessarily have to prohibit employees from having other jobs. You will want to make it clear that other jobs should not interfere with an employee's performance at your business, however.

The only time you need to get involved with an employee's moonlighting habits is when they affect your business and the employee's performance of his or her job. If you develop a moonlighting policy, use it when you counsel employees about whatever problems you perceive the other job causes for your business.

Some states have laws that protect employees from being discriminated against or otherwise disciplined by employers for engaging in off-duty conduct that is not against the law. Examples of such conduct would be smoking and participating in demonstrations.

You need to decide what you will do in the event that issues of misconduct outside of the workplace are raised concerning information that, if true, could pose a risk for your business.

You may have employees who are working two or more jobs, especially if your workforce contains a lot of part-time employees. Any policy or rule aimed at curbing employees' abilities to take a second job is bound to be unpopular. The only real reason you'd want to consider a policy like this would be if you were concerned that another job might interfere with an employee's job with your business or if the employee's other job is with a competitor.

You may find that you have some employees who are politically active. Most employers are glad that their employees take an active part in their communities. However, employees can sometimes get overzealous and may spend work time on their cause.

If an employee is engaging in some kind of activity or behavior while not at work that you may not approve of, you may be inclined to intervene and try to control or stop the behavior. But in order for you to do anything about an employee's off-duty conduct, there should be some relationship between the conduct and the employee's job or your business.

In handling off-duty misconduct, you need to examine the relationship between the person's job and the misconduct — is it something that is likely to affect business?

One workplace policy that has received a lot of attention in recent years requires employees to speak English. It becomes a particularly difficult situation as more people for whom English is a second language enter the workforce. The main thing to remember is that you must have a legitimate business-related reason for having an English-only rule; otherwise, your rule could be construed as discriminatory under certain circumstances.

What do you tell an employee who:

Once you have a dress code in place, you need to follow appropriate procedures to handle situations involving enforcement.

Despite the growing popularity of casual dress in various types of industries and businesses, including traditional office settings, among those companies that allow casual dress, there are usually standards of appearance.