Claim your free advice call
Find the safest and easiest way to resolve your workplace issue
Home
Resources
HR Policies Documentation
Peninsula Group, HR and Health & Safety Experts
(Last updated )
Peninsula Group, HR and Health & Safety Experts
(Last updated )
Read our Email Usage Policy advice guides for employers, or contact us for further HR, Health & Safety and Employment law advice.
Jump to section:
Corporate emails are powerful tools which allow employers and employees to carry out daily tasks. When creating employment policies, it’s very important to have an email usage policy.
As an employer, you must develop a policy that outlines your company's email etiquette and preferred communication protocols.
Failure to have email policies can cause employers to face significant financial and reputational costs.
In this guide, we'll discuss email usage policies, how to create one for your business, and examples of appropriate and inappropriate use of company email.
Find the safest and easiest way to resolve your workplace issue
An email usage policy is a set of clear guidelines a company develops to ensure employees use their email in line with business rules.
The policy usually varies depending on each company. But there are general terms that are typically common for most companies.
The benefits of a corporate email usage policy include protecting your company’s brand and reducing the risk of data breaches.
The following are three solid reasons why businesses should adopt an email policy:
Any email sent by employees through business means may end up in the public domain, causing reputational harm.
Sensitive information, gossip, and insulting or discriminatory messages are some examples of this.
A holistic policy for corporate email accounts helps employers protect their company's reputation and technological property.
The majority of cyber-attacks on company computers begin with phishing attempts, and the human factor plays a crucial role here. A large number of these phishing attacks are aimed at small businesses.
Having email policies is critical for promoting positive and effective communication. A policy serves to raise awareness while also protecting the company from liability, data loss, and downtime.
Email policies that require the use of anti-malware programs are more beneficial. These types of policies make it difficult for hackers to find access points to the company's confidential data.
No employer wants to face the financial and reputational costs of a lawsuit involving data abuse.
Email policies that are clearly defined can help you manage data protection breaches in your business.
These can include highly confidential data such as Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and intellectual property.
Employees are free to use their corporate email for work-related purposes. For example, they can use it to:
Additionally, employees can use their corporate email for select personal reasons. These are:
Employees are officially representing their company when they communicate through their business email address. This makes it their obligation to ensure compliance with their company's email and internet usage policy while sending and receiving emails.
When employees use their corporate email, they shouldn't be opening attachments from unknown senders. Also, they shouldn't be sending offensive or inappropriate emails to anyone.
This means that they must not:
Establishing email policies and informing your staff is crucial. Add these policies to your employee handbook, contracts, and procedures.
As an employer, make sure you keep the following considerations in mind when creating an email policy for your company:
Each of your employees should have their own email address that contains their name and the domain name of your company.
Make sure that corporate emails are protected by strong passwords of at least eight characters.
Make sure your email server is encrypted and that you're using secure connections.
Always have your anti-malware programs updated and use them to check incoming and outgoing emails for security issues.
Every sixty days, remind your employees to change their email password.
Allow your employees to only use company emails for personal use after work hours or during breaks.
You might also want to limit the amount of their attachments when they send personal emails.
Your company's email signature should contain company logos and key information.
This includes the company's name, official place, registration number, and other legal information.
A clear and memorable email signature can improve your employees' professional images in the industry.
Adding a disclaimer limits the legal liability of your company.
Beware that they may be ineffective and have little legal authority because recipients will likely notice them after reading the email.
The policy should inform employees that all corporate email will be monitored by human resources or the IT department.
Employers should encourage employees to sign the email policy. This shows that they've read it and consent to the use of email monitoring software.
Have an appropriate disciplinary process in place to handle breaches. It should be applied fairly and consistently throughout your company. Only if the policy is properly implemented and enforced will it give legal protection.
Make sure managers are aware of the policy's terms and provide a point of contact for employees who have questions.
If you find any of your employees in breach of this policy, then you should take disciplinary action against them. You can dismiss an employee immediately in cases of serious breaches of this policy that amount to gross misconduct.
You can consider terminating their employment contract for the following reasons:
Corporate email policies are essential for all businesses. This is to stop people from misusing information through company email addresses. Regardless of the number of employees, you need a detailed policy outlining your email etiquette.
Employers who don't have email policies may face high expenses in terms of money and reputation.
Peninsula offers 24/7 advice for contracts and documentation services which are available 365 days a year. Our team of experts can help you create policies, handbooks, and legal documents for your company.
Want to find out more? Contact us on 0800 028 2420 and book a free consultation with an HR consultant today.
When AI meets 40 years of Peninsula expertise... you get instant, expert answers to your HR and health & safety questions
Home
Resources
HR Policies Documentation
Got a question? Check whether we’ve already answered it for you…
When AI meets 40 years of Peninsula expertise... you get instant, expert answers to your HR and Health & Safety questions