Ghost written article for Construction News:

Help reduce your risk of lawsuits

One of the biggest headaches a business owner can face is defending a lawsuit. Lawsuits can appear from many directions and can be very costly to defend - whether they are warranted or not!

Although nothing can guarantee that you won't be sued, implementing company-wide policies can help reduce that risk.

Here are a few policies you may want to consider implementing to help lower the risk:

Require policy adherence - Policies should be formal, written rules or procedures that must be adhered to by everyone in the company - and they should be enforced. Consider taking the approach that conformity is mandatory, and failure to adhere to the policies may be cause for dismissal. By requiring that everyone in the company conform to the rules - regardless of their position - you help avoid the appearance of preferential treatment, discrimination or wrongdoing.

Offer zero tolerance for harassment - Lawsuits claiming harassment have become increasingly frequent. The more workers you employ, the greater your chances are that a harassment claim may arise.  Whether it is blatant or subtle harassment, profanity or comments based on age, gender, physical attributes, ethnicity or sexual orientation should not be tolerated.

Require background checks -- Background checks on potential employees can help prevent hiring someone that might have a questionable background.  Investigative firms offer a wide range of information, from criminal history to credit reports, and the cost is minimal compared to that of defending a lawsuit. You should, however, be sure to require them on all potential employees to avoid any appearance of discrimination.

We live in a litigious society in which it is highly possible that you may someday be sued. The implementation and enforcement of sound policies can help lower that risk.

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