• Employers are not required by law to provide a company handbook to employees.
• It is considered best practice to provide employees with an overview of company policies and procedures.
• Company policies may be compiled as a printed handbook, or electronically as a "library" of policies accessible to employees on line via the company intranet or a shared folder.
• If an agency wants to make employees aware of their rights under a law, they will require a posted notice.

Employers are not required by law to provide a company handbook to employees. However, providing the workforce with an overview of company policies and procedures is considered a best practice. This can be done in a printed handbook or on line. Policies that are made available electronically are easier to keep up-to-date. Make sure all employees know how and where to access the policies.

During employee orientation, refer to the handbook or online library of policies as the company’s rule book or code of conduct. Provide contact information in case the new employee has questions about the various policies in the future.

While specific policies are generally not required by federal law, developing a policy may be a condition of a government contract. For example, federal contractors may need an equal employment policy.

Similarly, federal law does not specifically require employers to have a sexual harassment policy, though some states do require this.

In most cases, however, where a state or federal agency wants to make employees aware of rights under a law, the agency will require a poster or other notice be placed in a conspicuous location, rather than mandate that an employer develop a policy.

For example, all employers must post notices about workplace safety as well as wage and hour laws, and most employers must post notices about equal opportunity employment, harassment, and workers’ compensation laws.