A Guide for Writing an Employee Handbook for Your Restaurant

Posted on 4 February, 2022

When you open a restaurant, you put a lot of thought into the menu, location, and decor. However, there are many other things to consider, like permits, restaurant insurance, and hiring employees. You may not have anticipated the need to create an employee handbook so your workers understand your expectations, policies, and procedures.

Although you are not legally required to create a handbook for your employees, you must inform them of your policies and their rights. Although you may also put up posters that fulfill these requirements, creating a portable resource for your workers makes it easier to find the information they need even when they’re not at work.

How Do You Structure an Employee Handbook?

One of the best parts about providing a handbook instead of just meeting the basic employment requirements with posters is that you can include a lot more information. Consider creating sections about your company values and culture, benefits information, words of appreciation, and specific expectations. This helps everyone understand where they fit into the company and gives new staff a glimpse of the big picture when they first start.

When organizing your employee information, think about inspiring new hires to actually read the book and familiarize themselves with its content. To that end, don’t save the best for last. Lead with some fun information about the restaurant’s history and what makes your company culture one of the best in town. Get them excited about working for you and seeing what’s in it for them. Make your handbook searchable or provide a comprehensive index and table of contents so that employees can quickly find what they’re looking for.

How Do I Create a Restaurant Employee Handbook?

Use free templates, a legal service, or a specialty source like The Society of Human Resource Management’s web-based Employee Handbook Builder to create your document. Depending on your expertise and whether your restaurant has an onsite content creator or graphic designer, you may be able to create the whole thing in-house.

Make your handbook something that’s easy to update as your policies and procedures change. You may also want to make edits as you get feedback from employees and your restaurant’s culture evolves. If you’re using an online handbook, be sure you know the login information, even if another person in your company put it together. There’s nothing worse than having to start over from scratch every time someone leaves your employment. If it uses specialty software, such as Adobe InDesign, be sure you know the basics or consider hiring a freelancer who does.

Your restaurant’s employee handbook goes a long way toward establishing your values and creating a positive culture. It also helps new hires get settled in and understand their roles. Take time to make a handbook that genuinely reflects the heart of your business, and keep it updated as things change. You’ll be glad you did.

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