Yes, Better Job Descriptions Will Prevent Lawsuits

Specifically, how do job descriptions protect against lawsuits and money damages? Here are several ways job descriptions help.

1. Promote Proper Classification

Recent multi-million-dollar lawsuits should be a wake-up call that good old wage-and-hour issues are worth a little attention, and job descriptions are a key factor. When job descriptions have proper detail, they help you reach a correct conclusion about exemptions. (Remember, the title is NOT the determining factor—job duties and responsibilities are.)

Example: Your secretary sometimes seems to know more about running your business than you do. You change the job title to executive assistant and put this person on salary. But does this give you the green light to treat the position as exempt? Not necessarily, because you can’t determine whether a position is subject to overtime rules based solely on a job title.

2. Support Accurate Compensation Structures

Good job descriptions clarify which jobs are similar and entitled to similar pay, and which jobs warrant different pay because they require different levels of skill, knowledge, or responsibility, or because they contribute to company goals in different ways.

With accurate, detailed job descriptions, and documented analysis, you will be in a strong position to fend off discrimination suits that are pay-based.

Step … away … from the keyboard! Your job descriptions are already written. Click here to see why thousands of managers have a permanent place in their offices for BLR’s classic Job Descriptions Encyclopedia.

3. Aid in Defending Against Discrimination Charges

Federal laws prohibit employers from basing employment decisions such as hiring, compensation, or other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment on illegal factors such as race, religion, sex, or national origin. But these laws don’t bar you from selecting, promoting, or rewarding individuals based on qualifications and merit. By defining a job’s requirements and setting forth clear performance standards, the job description will help to justify your employment decisions and reduce your organization’s exposure to costly litigation.

Example: Joshua is an associate engineer. Laura is a project engineer. Based on titles alone, if Joshua is promoted before Laura to a lead engineer position, Laura may raise a question about whether the promotion was made for an illegal reason. But job descriptions reveal that the experience requirements, performance duties, and responsibilities of the position Joshua held are more closely aligned and intended to serve as a springboard to the lead engineer position.

4. Facilitate ADA Compliance

By dividing a position’s tasks into essential and nonessential duties, you’ll be less likely to run afoul of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). When considering whether an accommodation is appropriate, employers start by examining the person’s ability to perform the job’s essential functions. With job descriptions that accurately list essential tasks and responsibilities, you will be able to respond reasonably to an accommodation request and comply with the ADA.

Example: A person with a disability applies for a particular job. There’s one function of the job that the person can’t perform, even with any reasonable accommodation.

If that function is an essential function, you can decline to hire the person. If, however, the function is not an essential function, you will not be able to use the inability to perform that function as a reason to turn the person down for employment.

Prewritten job descriptions in the Job Descriptions Encyclopedia now come with pay grades already attached. Click here to try the program at no cost.

5. Help in Complying with OSHA Rules

When a job description includes information about working conditions, such as dangerous work environments and special equipment used, it can help ensure compliance with safety rules and alert an applicant that the position is hazardous.

Example: OSHA’s bloodborne pathogen standards are typically applied according to the likelihood that an individual will be at risk for exposure. Job descriptions that include information about patient contact provide a guideline for applying these OSHA requirements.

In tomorrow’s Advisor, do’s and don’ts for better job descriptions, and an introduction to a collection of prewritten job descriptions that could be a great timesaver.