Hiring and Firing is Risky Business!
Human resources management should be a mandatory subject that is taught in dental school. After all, it is the staff that really controls the practice while the dentist is busy doing what he/she does best, being a dentist. I have found that many dentists do not have employment agreements with their staff, they don’t have an employee policies and manual, and they don’t do regular performance reviews. When HR problems occur, and they usually do, dentists can then be faced with challenging circumstances that they are not fully prepared to deal with which may result in spending precious time dealing with issues that could have been prevented at the beginning of the relationship.
Employment labour laws in Canada favour and protect the employees, and justifiably so. There are few protections in place for the employer, so you are left on your own to figure out what to do. My best advice is to consult with a professional employment lawyer if you have a situation, but in the meantime, here are a few suggestions to protect your practice:
1. Hire carefully. Most dentists hire in crisis mode because an employee quit or had to be terminated. Bring in a temporary and take your time to find the right person for your practice. It is emotionally and physically draining to hire the wrong person and it can have a devastating financial impact on your practice. If you do need to terminate, make sure that proper procedures are being used to terminate the employee because if they are not, you could continue to have difficulties even after the employee is long gone.
2. Create and implement an Employee Policies Manual that all team members must sign for receipt of the manual or handbook. The manual should cover everything related to your internal workplace policies and what standards your staff are expected to comply with. Some items that are included are what is considered grounds for dismissal, the office dress codes, vacation policy, anti-violence and harassment policy, performance criteria, bereavement leave, etc. This manual will save you a lot of headaches down the road as it outlines your terms and conditions of continued employment at your office.
3. Conduct performance reviews annually. Performance reviews are essential to good business management. It is important to conduct fair and objective performance reviews based on the line items in the employee’s job descriptions (which should also be reviewed annually since they often change and evolve). Performance reviews should be a separate process from salary reviews and be separated by time. For example, your performance reviews should be done approximately 3 months before your fiscal year end. That way if you are making salary adjustments, you will know whether or not your budget can support the increases or bonuses. You have to have the money in your budget to award salary increases and they should be based on performance merit, not just an expectation.
Conducting performance reviews help you to spot problem areas and implement corrections if needed. These are opportunities for growth and performance improvement. Employees always assume that they are doing a great job. They require your feedback to tell them how they are doing and sometimes to make corrections in their behaviour. Your intent is to have a long term relationship with your employees and performance reviews will help to guide this process.
3. Employment Contracts – It is especially important to have all employees sign an employment contract. This protects the doctor as well as the employee in the long run. Items that should be included in the contract should reference the policies in your Employee Policy Manual and should also include non-solicitation agreement, a non-disparagement clause and restrict the former employee of poaching your current employees with the intent of enticing them to be employed at your competitors. Employment contracts provide clear cut guidelines and expectations of the employee. Having contracts in place may also help to increase the value of your practice. The cost of having the contracts prepared by an employment lawyer is well worth the investment.
4. Associate Agreement and Manual – Most dentists have legal agreements in place with their associates, however, not all do. Sometimes it is a “handshake” agreement, which can prove to be a problem if something goes wrong, like opening a practice across the street. In addition to the legal associate agreement, I recommend having an Associate Policies Manual in place that closely resembles the Employee Policies Manual. This manual will delineate the terms and conditions of employment at your office. Associates are employees of the principal owners, and they also need to have guidelines to follow. For example, outline how the associate should integrate with your practice, your staff, and most importantly, your patients. The associate must know that they do not have the right to discipline your staff, nor do they have the right to dismiss a patient from your practice without your knowledge or directive.
Your human resource is your most valuable resource. Starting the relationship off right and implementing policies and procedures in your practice, provides your practice with infrastructure and your employees with comfort and even increase the value of your practice.
