Federal, state and local laws require most employers to post certain notices where all employees can read them. HR Specialist Premium Plus subscribers can learn more about these requirements—and the legal pitfalls of poster mistakes—by reading 10 minutes well-spent: Audit your employee bulletin board.
In the meantime, here are four general tips for maintaining your bulletin boards.
1. Keep your bulletin board organized, with clearly labeled sections. Depending on your industry, such divisions might include: State and Federal Laws, Emergency Response Procedures, Safety Policies, Personnel Policies and Management Notices.
2. If you post company personnel policies, include any disclaimers, such as those that say the policies do not create a contract of employment or alter any employee’s status as an at-will employee.
3. Limit bulletin board use to official business only. Prohibit employees from using the company bulletin board. Instead, use a second bulletin board for employees to post notices about yard sales, school fundraisers and so forth.
Include a statement on the board that management reserves the right to remove inappropriate notices, and specify that religious solicitations, sexually suggestive items, racially offensive items and political postings are prohibited.
If, however, you are concerned about union organizing activities, you may wish to ban employee postings of any kind anywhere. The law is unclear on whether you can allow personal postings but ban union-related ones.
4. Check both bulletin boards on a regular basis. When in doubt about required postings and permissible employee notices, consult your attorney.
