Sleet

Essential HR Policies Every Company Needs (and How to Keep Them Useful)

Nihit Dobariya
Guides
6 min read
Quick answer

Every company needs a core set of HR policies: code of conduct, attendance, leave, anti-harassment and POSH, equal opportunity, grievance handling, discipline, pay and payroll, performance, data privacy, IT use, remote work and exit. Write them in plain language, explain the reasons, get a lawyer to review them and collect digital acknowledgement at onboarding.

Tidy office desk with binders, papers, and stationery.

HR policies set expectations and protect both the employee and the company. They answer questions before they become disputes. You do not need a hundred-page manual, but you do need a core set that is clear, accessible and updated.

Key points covered in this guide: Core policies, Optional but valuable, Drafting tips, Rolling out, Keeping them current, Common mistakes

Core policies

  • ✓Code of conduct: Standards of behaviour, conflicts of interest and ethics.
  • ✓Attendance and working hours: Timings, flexibility, late arrival and reporting of absence.
  • ✓Leave policy: Types, accrual, approval and encashment.
  • ✓Anti-harassment and POSH: Prevention, complaint channel and Internal Committee.
  • ✓Equal opportunity and anti-discrimination: Commitment to fair treatment.
  • ✓Grievance handling: How concerns are raised and resolved.
  • ✓Disciplinary procedure: Steps, warnings and appeals.
  • ✓Compensation and payroll: Pay dates, deductions and reimbursements.
  • ✓Performance management: Reviews, feedback and improvement plans.
  • ✓Data privacy and confidentiality: Handling of personal and company data.
  • ✓IT and acceptable use: Devices, email, social media and security.
  • ✓Remote and hybrid work: Eligibility, equipment and expectations.
  • ✓Exit and separation: Notice periods, handover and final settlement.
Two colleagues collaborating on a project in a bright, modern office space.
A checklist beats memory: write the steps down once and reuse them every month.

Optional but valuable

  • ✓Travel and expense policy.
  • ✓Learning and development policy.
  • ✓Referral and recruitment policy.
  • ✓Whistleblower policy.
  • ✓Wellbeing and employee assistance.

Drafting tips

  • ✓Write in plain language.
  • ✓Explain the reason behind rules.
  • ✓Give examples for tricky points.
  • ✓Align with applicable laws and state rules.
  • ✓Get legal review before publishing.
Confident businesswoman working on a laptop and taking notes in an office.
A checklist beats memory: write the steps down once and reuse them every month.

Rolling out

Share policies at onboarding and obtain digital acknowledgement. Train managers on how to apply them. Store them in an easy-to-find place, such as an employee portal.

Keeping them current

Review every year, and whenever laws change or you open in a new state. Keep a version history and note what changed.

Common mistakes

  • ✓Copying policies from another company without tailoring them.
  • ✓Writing rules that nobody can enforce.
  • ✓Applying them unevenly.
  • ✓Letting them go out of date.

A policy is only as strong as the consistency with which it is applied.

Start with the policies that address your biggest risks and add more as you grow.

Nihit Dobariya

Written by

HR Manager, Airwix Technologies (Sleet)

Nihit Dobariya is the HR Manager at Airwix Technologies in Ahmedabad, where he runs HR and payroll for the team behind Sleet. He writes about payroll, PF and ESIC, professional tax, the labour codes and everyday HR practice for Indian employers, and checks each rule against the official notification before it is published.

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