COVID Pandemic Spurs Employee Handbook Updates

SOR Controls Group, Ltd. (SCG) is a global leader in the design and manufacture of measurement and control devices under the brands of SOR Inc., Smart Sensors Incorporated (SSi), SETEX Products and SENSOR Sampling Systems and Data Monitoring Systems. SOR Controls Group actively serves all sectors of the process industry with particular strengths in the oil & gas, petrochemical, chemical and power segments. SCG also maintains an engineering and design team capable of providing engineered-to-order systems and products.

With headquarters in Lenexa, Kansas, and regional offices in Houston, Texas, Beijing and Dubai, SCG supports a network of sales and service personnel capable of addressing customer requirements in any geographic market around the world.

SOR needed to make sure its policies were current given the changes with employment law because of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES), as well as confirm the policies were legally sound. When the COVID-19 pandemic started, the unknown implications of the virus on employees and the company created a surge of activity for human resources and escalated the need to ensure the employee handbook was the place employees and management could go for updated corporate guidelines. Additionally, there was a need to add COVID-19 protocol and policies to the employee handbook and distribute the information quickly as guidance changed. 

SOR turned to Kansas Manufacturing Solutions, part of the MEP National Network™, for an employee handbook solution. KMS’ experts worked side-by-side, virtually, with SOR Human Resource leadership to update policies in the employee handbook. An employee handbook is an important element of creating a company’s culture. It sets consistent expectations of employee and management behavior and performance. The handbook communicates the company’s mission and vision while providing provisions to protect both the employee and the employer from unfair treatment and unclear policies, which was extremely important during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The handbook was reviewed by a legal expert to ensure the policies were enforceable and positioned SOR favorably with employees. A COVID-19 addendum was added to the employee handbook. This addendum created and enacted COVID-19 policies for the company.  As an addendum, this document can be continuously modified as COVID-19 guidance from the CDC and the state of Kansas changes, without having to change the standard policies and procedures established in the employee handbook.