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No Skeletons in the Closet: Conducting Human Resources Audits
Practical Law Legal Update 1-547-1645 (Approx. 4 pages)
No Skeletons in the Closet: Conducting Human Resources Audits
by Practical Law Labor & Employment
| Published on 29 Oct 2013 • USA (National/Federal) |
Stale or unexamined human resources practices may create litigation risks for employers. To minimize these risks, employers should regularly review human resources policies and practices to detect and correct those that create exposure to lawsuits. Employment laws administered by human resources employees affect most areas of an employer's business, carrying a significant burden for compliance with federal and state laws governing a wide variety of matters encountered daily. Audits help employers to identify and address hidden skeletons in the closet.
Stale or unexamined human resources practices may create litigation risks for employers. To minimize these risks, employers should regularly review human resources policies and practices to detect and correct those that create exposure to lawsuits.
Employment laws administered by human resources employees affect most areas of an employer's business, carrying a significant burden for compliance with federal and state laws governing a wide variety of matters encountered on a daily basis. For example, human resources staff develop and implement policies and practices for, among others:
- Employee handbooks.
- Avoiding discrimination, harassment and retaliation in hiring, employment and termination decisions.
- Granting and managing leave.
- Accommodating disability or religious needs.
- Wage and hour matters.
- Discipline and investigations.
Human resources audits are therefore important tools for employers to minimize litigation risks. Audits help employers to identify and address hidden skeletons in the closet, including:
- Missing or poorly followed compliance procedures.
- Incomplete, inconsistent or infrequent training.
- Poorly publicized complaint protocols.
- Misunderstandings about the employer's obligations for accommodation or leave.
Employers that conduct audits should address any issues identified during the audits and create awareness among their employees about rights and obligations of employees and the employer.
Practical Law has resources to assist employers in conducting human resources audits. For more information, see Human Resources Audit Toolkit.