Ten Tips for Updating Workplace Policies Heading into 2025

workplace policy

The arrival of a New Year provides the opportunity to evaluate workplace policies for their relevance and to ensure your business’s compliance with current legislation and regulations. Updating company policies now can help protect against future employment litigation in Texas. The Houston employment attorneys at Feldman & Feldman offer these ten tips for updating workplace policies in 2025.

Why Updating Workplace Policies is Necessary

Updating workplace policies at the beginning of each year allows you to address your growing business needs. Demonstrating a business’s understanding of current laws to your employees will enable you to address the changing rights of workers effectively. It may also be time to address a business’s policies to ensure employees are aware of the expectations of a company. An annual review and update demonstrates that, as an employer, you are serious about fostering a work environment that supports all workers equally.

Review Current Workplace Policies

Assemble all current business policies and documents. Discuss these policies with supervisors, department leaders, human resources, and other key business figures to determine what works, what no longer serves your business and employees, and what policies are outdated due to new laws and regulations. Documents to review may include:

  • Employee handbook
  • Code of Conduct and new Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) policies
  • Departmental guidelines
  • Anti-discrimination and workplace harassment guidelines and other civil rights policies supporting workplace inclusivity
  • Data privacy and remote work policies

Collecting employee surveys as part of your review provides employees with a voice about the impact of policies on their work environment. Improving the business environment and an employee’s degree of comfort in it is pivotal to employee retention. A key factor in why employees stay with an employer is when a company’s values are compatible with those of employees and are reflected in the policies and procedures implemented by managers.

Identify New Legal Requirements and Business Expansion Plans Impacting Policies

Staying compliant with local, state, and federal laws is critical to protect against legal action and ensure workplace policies are up to date. New legislation may impact data protection requirements, health and safety regulations, and labor laws. As technological advancements become available, addressing new technology use, such as artificial intelligence (AI), is necessary to protect a business’s integrity and product quality.

A business’s growth may spur new policies as it expands its services to other parts of the country and the world. Expanding businesses may benefit from implementing crisis management policies and emergency responses that address global events or disasters impacting daily operations.

Preparing for large-scale crises can nurture employee health and safety while also ensuring business continuity.

Consult a Houston Employment Lawyer

Schedule a review of your updated policies with a Houston employment attorney at Feldman & Feldman. Our firm works to prevent employment litigation by implementing sound policies that comply with current legislation and business regulations. A member of our firm offers training to help managers effectively implement sound policies.

Even the most comprehensive policies cannot prevent all potential legal matters. Our firm possesses experience offering workable, creative solutions when your business requires legal representation.

Create a Management Review and Approval Process

Having approval from the team overseeing policy development and implementation is crucial before policy updates begin. Managers, supervisors, and human resource departments should have a grasp of these policies to provide for effective implementation. Scheduling a Q&A meeting helps ensure the newest policies are in place and prevents confusion with existing policies that will no longer apply.

Clearly Communicate Policy Updates and Consider Accessibility

Provide policy revisions using concise, everyday terms available in the languages your employees speak fluently. Concepts embodying multiple interpretations should contain explanations and examples to remove ambiguity. Explaining legal terms by removing complex or lengthy wording makes policies clearer.

Organize new policies so they are easy to locate. Complex information may be more presentable in bulleted lists, infographics, or by using visual aids. Providing the option for a hard copy of policies and digital access allows for accessibility.

Establish an Updated Policy Review Schedule

policy reviewAnnual reviews allow businesses to examine all applicable policies thoroughly. During this review, new industry standards, regulations, and laws can be addressed. Quarterly or bi-annual reviews of policies that require updating more frequently may be necessary to address areas of business with rapid growth, continual regulation changes, or policies that require a more immediate review and response.

Policy reviews may also be necessary on an occurrence-based schedule to address specific incidents, significant shifts in business, or policies impacting employee safety. Proactively updating workplace policies can prevent unexpected occurrences and improve workflow by fostering a supportive, policy-driven environment.

Create Training Schedules to Implement Workplace Policies

Implementing training programs can help prevent problems before they occur. Many governmental agencies, such as the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division (TWCCRD), offer training presentations relevant to your business policies. While most policy updates do not require complete overhauls, significant policy changes require more attention to ensure employees understand expectations. Having employees sign off on training completion documents their participation in training on new policy concepts and how to implement a policy.

Monitor Policy Compliance

policy complianceIdentifying policy non-compliance may call attention to poor policy dissemination and the need to make policies more available. Non-compliance can also identify a lack of enforcement in various departments or the need to address the crucial nature of following business policies. Regular policy review schedules, including audits, can identify key issues.

Using automated systems to track employee training or reviews of new policies provides insight into whether employees access these updates regularly. Notifying employees of updated policies and requiring acknowledgment of receipt and review benefits the employees by clearly explaining expectations and governing rules. It also protects your business from liability due to negligence.

Address Policy Violations Immediately

Employees should understand the corrective measures your company will implement when policy violations occur. Responding immediately demonstrates that your company takes policies seriously, and addressing violations can serve as a safety measure to prevent harm.

Violating workplace policies may require further training by an employee or result in disciplinary action. Policies should strengthen the relationship between your business, employees, and management. Your prompt response can also help further protect against liability and employment litigation in Texas.

Establish Incentives to Encourage Policy Success

A company’s success depends on employee adaptation to new policies and practicing them. Incentives can boost morale in a stressful work environment that requires continual adaptation. Offering incentives also demonstrates you recognize demands on employees and strive to reward their compliance.

Recognizing what your employees value in their jobs can provide insight into the best incentives for you. Allowing schedule flexibility, providing designated mental health or exercise breaks, or offering monetary compensation are ways to encourage policy success.

Work With a Houston Employment Attorney to Update Workplace Policies

New policies must align with local, state, and federal industry laws. These policies help ensure business growth while protecting your employees, who are invaluable assets to your company. The Houston employment attorneys at Feldman & Feldman recognize the potentially devastating effects employment disputes can have on businesses due to out-of-date policies.

Our firm strives to help you address industry changes and needs by producing policies that reflect your values and goals. We also offer experienced representation when the updated policies and procedures cannot prevent legal actions against you. Schedule a review of workplace policies and employment law training or discuss possible employment litigation in Houston, TX. If you are wondering if you need an employment lawyer, contact Feldman & Feldman.