When it comes to human resources management, “document everything” is generally a good idea. Effective documentation serves as an audit trail if anything goes wrong, and backs up your HR team if you ever end up facing legal issues with an employee.
But excessive documentation can create problems too, from overwhelming your team members with too much paperwork to mishandling employee files. Here’s how to level up your record-keeping with HR case documentation best practices and how you can digitize and automate HR processes to improve employee relations.
HR case documentation refers to the records that you keep regarding employee issues, from disciplinary action to workplace accommodations. HR documents include incident reports, performance reviews, leave of absence requests, and employment contracts. HR case documents can come in a range of formats, from traditional forms to digital files stored in an HR case management system.
HR case documentation is important for legal compliance: It demonstrates that you’ve met your obligations as an employer and treated your employees professionally. But effective case documentation also improves the employee experience, by keeping employee information secure and streamlining new hire paperwork.
Plus, HR case documentation reduces the risk of error and data loss by ensuring that information is consistent across documents and backed up in multiple places.
HR cases differ from ordinary HR paperwork in that they relate to specific situations in the employee lifecycle, including workplace incidents and employee relations issues. Here are five types of cases your HR department should be prepared to handle:
It’s important to document disciplinary action against an employee in order to show that you’ve followed company policies — even if the action was just a verbal warning. This helps to substantiate later actions, such as suspension or termination, if the situation escalates into serious employee misconduct.
For less serious incidents, your HR case documentation could include a performance improvement plan (PIP) as part of the performance management process.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA.gov) requires employers to provide workplace accommodations to employees with a qualifying disability. This could take the form of a flexible schedule, a remote work environment, or more ergonomic work equipment.
Maintaining appropriate HR case documentation shows that you engaged in the ADA interactive process and arrived at a reasonable accommodation. Be sure to document any follow-up discussions or changes to the accommodation over time.
Workers’ compensation case management is especially complex, because it involves multiple steps — all of which need to be documented — as well as coordination with third parties, such as workplace safety agencies and insurance providers.
Depending on the situation, you may need to conduct a workplace investigation, file an incident report, and process an employee’s short-term disability claim. Pulpstream’s HR case management software helps HR professionals streamline workers’ compensation cases and facilitate the return-to-work process after they have recovered.
Employee complaints always need to be taken seriously, no matter how minor they may seem. These can range from workplace safety issues to difficulty accessing employee benefits. Failing to address complaints can do lasting harm to employee performance and retention, and even lead to legal issues if you overlook harassment or abuse.
Pulpstream’s employee experience platform makes it easy for employees to report an issue and access HR services online via a user-friendly portal. A built-in knowledge base allows employees to troubleshoot minor issues themselves, while smart ticket routing ensures that the right HR professional is assigned to each case.
A leave of absence can range from a single continuous absence to an intermittent leave request. Some types of leave are required by law, and it’s the employer’s responsibility to confirm employee eligibility and reinstate them in the same position afterwards.
Even for leave requests that aren’t approved, it’s important to provide documentation of your denial, since employees may have the right to appeal your decision. Pulpstream’s leave automation platform does most of the work for you, automatically assessing an employee’s eligibility and notifying them as soon as a decision has been made.
HR case documentation doesn’t have to look like an overstuffed filing cabinet, a series of email attachments, or a spreadsheet that you haven’t updated in years. Today’s HR document management software can streamline your workflows and store employee data in the cloud so it’s there when and where you need it.
Follow these HR case documentation best practices to get started:
Get employees familiar with good HR documentation practices by providing a seamless user experience during the onboarding process. Instead of overwhelming them with new hire paperwork, build it into your onboarding training. This will keep them from viewing form-filling as a standalone chore, but as an integrated part of the process.
While you’re at it, take time to share your company policies, including your personal leave policy, remote work policy, disciplinary action policy. This way, employees will know what recourse they have if they experience any issues in the workplace.
Nothing complicates HR documentation more than mismatched forms and inconsistent practices. Digitize important documents so employees can easily access them online, and use standardized templates so they’re the same across your organization.
Consistency allows you to track key metrics, like the number or type of incidents, and eliminate data silos to support better decision-making. Standardization is especially important for performance reviews and assessments, since it can reduce concerns around favoritism or unfair treatment.
There’s no getting around the fact that good documentation can be time-consuming. A thorough report takes more time to assemble than a generic one. But automation can eliminate the most tedious parts of HR case documentation, automatically filling in key information so you don’t have to enter the same details on multiple forms.
For example, Pulpstream’s incident management automation tools help you kickstart the documentation process as soon as the clock starts ticking. Gather evidence and collect witness reports from your tablet or mobile device, saving valuable time in the incident management process and creating a paper trail for later.
HR cases often generate sensitive data, from medical records used to determine an employee’s ADA accommodation or leave of absence under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Even if there weren’t strict FMLA and ADA confidentiality rules to adhere to, protecting employees’ sensitive information is just good practice.
Cloud-based document management platforms like Pulpstream go a long way toward protecting employee data, by storing it in a secure online database and placing clear permissions on which of your employees can access it.
Keeping good HR documentation throughout the employee lifecycle helps you maintain positive relations and part on good terms. Follow a consistent employee exit process to solicit feedback from departing employees and improve the work environment.
Document any incidents in the lead-up to their departure — such as disciplinary issues — to reduce the risk of a wrongful termination complaint later.
HR cases range from workplace safety issues to everyday complaints. Tracking cases can be a time-consuming process for your HR team, but it’s important to do well if you want to foster a healthy work environment and mitigate your risk of legal issues.
HR case documentation platforms help you process cases more effectively by digitizing and automating as much paperwork as possible. From pre-filling forms with employee information to standardizing performance reviews and assessment templates, strong documentation practices save you time, money, and hassle in the long run.
Request a demo today to see how Pulpstream can transform case management and streamline workflows for your HR team!