Contracts You Need To Have New Employees Sign To Protect Yourself

Annabelle Smyth

August 15, 2013

	Not rated
	Rate:

New employees bring new experience, skills and valuable assets to a company. However, sometimes things just don't work out. Whether the new hires find that they don't like the work or fail to complete their assignments, you might find yourself with a tough HR situation. In some cases, employees might sue the company for a variety of reasons, or worse, they might take valuable clients and contacts away from the company and branch out on their own. If you want to avoid these HR nightmares, there are certain contracts that you need every new hire to sign. Doing so could help protect your business against unnecessary legal battles.

Non-Compete Agreements

A non compete form should be signed by everyone but especially your sales representatives. This ensures that should things go south, you retain access to valuable clientele information. After all, sales make a business, and you can't afford to let someone steal these clients away from you. Salespeople who violate non-compete agreements may be subject to hefty fines and other reprimands that prevent them from going rogue. Having these forms in place will give you peace of mind knowing that you have control over your established client base.

Social Media Contracts

With increasing importance placed on social media, you need to ensure that your employees use their personal pages responsibly. Everyone has a first amendment right to free speech, but that doesn't give people the right to post on behalf of your company any of their own ideas and comments. Ensure that your employees know the difference between personal posting and posting on behalf of the company. Many businesses now require employees to sign contracts that outline the rules for posting as the business entity.

For example, someone who works for a TV station may post information or opinions about the TV station with the stipulation that they are an employee of the company and that the company may not share the person's views. Having employees sign a social media contract ensures your company's online reputation.

State & Federal Legal Forms

Make sure that your handbook includes state and federal guidelines regarding federally protected classes like age, race and gender, and ensure that your employees sign a contract representing that they understand your workplace's consequences for violating these policies. This will save you many legal battles later if employees claim that they didn't know about certain federal and state rules. Your contracts should be specific and mandatory to ensure that everyone falls under the same guidelines.

If you run a business or work in HR, then you know that bringing in new talent means expanding your business in the right direction. New employees can be a great asset, but even if you hire the best of the best, you still need to protect your company from future legal ramifications. Having them sign certain forms will ensure that you stay protected. You can find many different forms online using FindLegalForms.com. Don't assume that your employees will stay loyal. Protect yourself and your business by using the right legal forms for your new hires.