If you are frustrated with losing your Unemployment (UI) Protests, you are not alone. In fact, you are one of many. Did you know that most employers in the U.S. only win about half of the protests they file? Why is that? Well, it is due to numerous reasons such as substandard documentation, poor claims management, and lack of specific unemployment knowledge, but it could mostly be due to a poorly written employee handbook.

What is an employee handbook?

Many employers throw together an employee handbook just because they feel that they are expected to have one. However, it is extremely important to have a well-written, up-to-date and strict employee handbook. A properly written employee handbook should be a mix of state and federal employment laws, and your (the employer) expectations and needs, such as: medical leave policies, equal employment policies, worker’s compensation policies, and of course, unemployment policies. Employers can get into trouble when they A. Do not have an employee handbook, B. Have an employee handbook that has not been updated every 18 to 24 months, or C. Choose to follow only their own wants and needs instead of the laws.

How can your employee handbook help your ability to win unemployment protests?

If your employee handbook does not list your policy on unemployment or it lists your policy wrongly, you could be setting yourself up to lose your unemployment protests. Not sure if your policies are correct? To start, be sure to consider the following:

1. When you submit a protest, unemployment examiners might look for patterns of offense and patterns of disciplinary documentation. It is your responsibility as an employer to ensure that your policies are not overly strict or that you do not terminate employees without building a well-thought out case first. If you do not, as many employers don’t, you’re likely to lose your unemployment protest.
2. How do you track attendance? Are you sure to properly track and document any attendance violations? You want to make sure that you have a policy regarding a “no call/no show” absence to protect yourself when submitting an unemployment protest. If your policy doesn’t use the correct language, the agency could consider your “no call/no show” a termination instead of a voluntary quit, and you could unfortunately lose your protest.
3. Having employee behavior policies in place will help you win UI protests. Make sure you have such things as drug and alcohol policies and conflict of interest policies.
4. You want to make sure that every employee you hire signs off on the employee handbook. This way, they are agreeing to every policy you have put in place.
5. Consider getting professional help for your employee handbook. Having a professional review your policies and ensure that you are following state and federal employment laws will only help your case.
6. Be sure to keep all information over time. You will want to create some sort of database where you can file past and current employee handbooks, and every signature from every employee. Being able to present the correct information will give you a much greater chance of winning your UI protests.

The above points are all things you need to consider when creating your employee handbook. A poor or out-of-date employee handbook can prevent you from winning your UI protests and get you in trouble with a variety of state and federal agencies as well. Though your handbook is created to set precedents, policies, processes, and expectations you set for employee performance and behavior, it is also what could save you during an unemployment protest.

If you have questions regarding what specifically to include in your employee handbook regarding unemployment insurance, or if you would like your handbook/policies evaluated and/or updated, please feel free to contact us.