Do's and Don'ts in the Workplace (part Iv)

The following is an excerpt from my new book, "MORPHING INTO THE REAL WORLD - A Handbook for Entering the Work Force" which is a survival guide for young people as they transition into adult life. The book offers considerable advice regarding how to manage our personal and professional lives. As a part of this, I found it necessary to discuss the legal ramifications of employment.

Over the last few weeks we discussed a variety of things pertaining to the terms of employment. This week I will wrap up this four part series by discussing miscellaneous items you may encounter in the workplace.

Do's and Don'ts in the Workplace (Part IV)

Expense Accounts

An expense account is used to record the expenditures an employee incurred while acting on behalf of the company, such as when conducting a sales call, visiting a customer, attending a training program, etc. How such expenses are to be recorded should be defined by the corporate Policy Manual or some other corporate guideline.

Rule Number 1 - retain all receipts. Companies will typically not compensate employees without a receipt. If a client or prospective customer is involved, be sure to write their names, titles, and the company they represent, on the back of the receipt.

Rule Number 2 - know what you are entitled to record as an expense, and what you are not. For example, some companies may specify a cap for meals and lodging. Anything above the cap will be at the employee's expense. Also, if you are being compensated for automobile mileage, know how much you are entitled. There may be instances where corporate mileage compensation is below what is allowed by the government. In this situation, you may be entitled to use the difference as a deduction on your income taxes. For example, suppose the government allows $.35 per mile, yet your company only pays you $.30 per mile; you are entitled to report the $.05 difference on your income taxes. Consult the latest IRS regulations for clarification.

When entertaining a customer, know who is supposed to pick up the check at the end of the meal. You do not want any embarrassing situations to arise, particularly if it may cost you a sale. Because of this, make sure the other person knows who is paying the tab BEFORE you sit down.

Air Travel

When traveling on business, there are several items to be observed:

1. Booking the trip - Most large companies handle reservations for air transportation themselves or contract with specific travel agencies to handle it for them. By doing so, they typically secure better rates than the average consumer gets. Or you may be asked to make the reservations yourself. Regardless, record the confirmation number of your tickets in case they are lost.
   
   
2. Companies will have rules on the travel class you are allowed to use (first class, business, tourist). As the young hire, in all likelihood you will be flying tourist. Senior employees and executives typically enjoy First or Business Class.
   
   
3. You may earn Frequent Flyer points for your travel, but if it is on business and at the company's expense, do not be surprised if you must surrender these points to the company as opposed to you keeping them. Consult corporate guidelines.
   
   
4. When traveling out of the country, be sure to take your passport and traveler's checks (if you are so inclined). Make photocopies of all of these items and keep one copy in the lining of your luggage and one copy at home with your family. In the event they are lost or stolen, the photocopies will prove invaluable for replacing them promptly.
   
   
5. Finally, When arriving at a new country, be sure to check the latest currency exchange rate to make sure you are being fairly charged for something.
   

Moving/Transfers

There may be instances where it is necessary for you to accept a transfer within your company to another location. As such, you will be asked to move your family and yourself. Before you accept the transfer, make sure it is worth your while to do so. In other words, is there some sort of incentive for you to uproot your life? Financial compensation is nice, but you may be left with no alternative but to accept the job (or face dismissal). If you are being groomed for management, you will most likely have to take one or more transfers to climb the corporate ladder. If you like your current job and continue to spurn transfers to other parts of the company, you may be hurting your chances for advancement. If you say "No" too often, management will stop asking and you might suddenly find your career arrested.

Assuming you want to accept a transfer, find out first what the company policies are regarding moving expenses. Will they offer you suitable moving expenses or next to nothing? Will they allow you time to find suitable accommodations at your new location or must you do this at your own expense? Think twice about accepting a transfer, they may genuinely want you to accept the transfer, or they may be hinting that you should find another job.

Office Romances

This is an incredibly delicate subject as office romances can turn very ugly. Nonetheless, people will continue to be attracted to each other. I would caution you to avoid an office romance for several reasons:

1. Your intentions may be misinterpreted by the other party and you may suddenly find yourself embroiled in a sexual harassment lawsuit.
   
   
2. Even if you date for a while, but decide to break up later on, this may make for an uncomfortable situation in the workplace from then on.
   
   
3. Openly dating another employee may lead to petty jealousies which can also lead to problems in the workplace.
   

Knowing of such potential problems, companies may flatly prohibit office romances and deem it grounds for dismissal. Others may allow office romances as long as you notify certain management personnel, such as the Human Resources Department. Be sure to consult the company's Policy Manual for particulars.

The best policy is to simply avoid an office romance if at all possible. If not, be incredibly discreet about it and go into it knowing you both run the risk of running into problems later on.

CONCLUSION

This series of Do's and Don'ts have been aimed at guiding new hires on the right path. Quite often newbies are dropped into a corporate workplace that can be rather confusing and disheartening. If you are not careful, you can be fed to the wolves. The purpose of these tutorials, as extracted from my new book, is simply to set them on the right track. Maybe the best way to think of it is as a road map for traversing the corporate mine fields.

If you would like to discuss this with me in more depth, please do not hesitate to send me an e-mail.