Consultant’s Corner: Employee Cell Phone Use Policy

Employee Cell Phone Use header

Q: I am looking for a basic policy for the use of personal cell phones by employees on company time. This is a major problem affecting productivity in our business. 

A: Increasingly, cell phone usage is becoming a problem in the work place. Usage of cellular devices takes focus away from the day-to-day operations of your business, and can lead to costly mistakes. Often, the best way to address this issue is with a well-written policy (covering the use of both company-issued cell phones (if applicable) and personal cell phones) that is included in an employee’s handbook or new hire packet. This will ensure that the employee is aware of the company’s stance on cell phone usage while at work.

Once the policy has been made clear to the employee, management must make a dedicated effort to enforce the policy fairly across the board.

While we recommend that any policy you enact for your business be reviewed by your lawyer, you can review sample cell phone policies and related information at websites like the following:

Cell Phone Policy Sample for Workplaces | About.com

Human Resource Policy Samples | ELInfonet.com

Discussion:

How to Create a Cell Phone Policy | INC.com

Bill Wortman

Bill Wortman is the Chief Business Consultant for GoSmallBiz.com, with over 40 years of business experience. In addition to 12 years consulting small business owners, Bill’s professional career includes a big-eight CPA accounting firm, national consumer finance, big-three automotive manufacturing, Arby’s fast food, marketing, and other industries. He’s held multiple executive-level positions and fulfilled the role of CFO at large, publicly held (NYSE, NASDAQ, and AMEX) corporations. In addition, he’s been an owner of private ventures involving residential real estate development and a General Motors new car dealership.