CyberNorth is undergoing a big change. Just as I am about to leave, indeed just after I will have left, it is taking the enormous step of employing people. Up to this point, everyone engaged with the company has either been contracted or provided their services for free. This feels like a big step and I am a little apprehensive about it all, not that I will be around. It’s all a bit too grown up for me and means things such as tax, national insurance, payroll and… policies.
Taking people onto your payroll means that you have to have policies to support their empp;oyment. It all seems obvious but how many, what should they cover and, just as importantly, who is going to write them? It also means that you have to have someone in place to manage and apply the policies as well as some sort of management structure to make it all happen. You see what I mean about growing up?
Thankfully, these days we have the Internet, where you can find out all sorts of information, including what you need to have and don’t. Accordingly, all companies or organisations with five or more employees must have a written health and safety policy in place to comply with statutory duties. Any procedures related to formal disciplinaries or grievances must meet the minimum statutory requirements. Aside from the above, there is not any legal requirement to provide any further workplace policies or procedures, such as an equality and diversity policy.
Technically, other than those, CyberNorth doesn’t need to have any more but it is good practice to add a few more in, especially when it comes to guiding employees as to what is acceptable and not. I have written a draft handbook which has led to a number of policies, as has the work we have been doing on BCorp.
Some of these have been wrapped up into the individual’s contract of employment such as: Job roles; Meal and rest breaks; Company holidays; Termination guidelines and procedures; Payment schedule and; Pension plans.
In addition to these we have ended up with nine others, covering
- General employment: Employee performance review policy; EDI policy and: Code of ethics and professional conduct policy.
- Compensation and benefits: Paid time off policies; Menopause policy and; Breastfeeding policy.
- Safety and Security: Health and safety at work policy; Data protection and privacy policies and; Fire safety policy.
I’m not sure whether this is overkill or not. No doubt we have missed some out but it’s a good start. Hopefully we will have this all in place before I leave and our first employees come on board.
Thoughts from a Guerrilla Worker 