Thursday, July 15, 2010

North Carolina Employment Practices Liability



Restaurants are complex businesses and their insurance issues are complex as well. In my experience an area that gives me great concern for restaurant owners is the issue of Employment Practices Liability. The good news is that you can buy insurance to protect your business although it can be expensive.



What is Employment Practices Liability insurance (EPLI)? EPLI is designed to provide protection for business owners against claims from employees regarding wrongful employment acts. These acts include any actual or alleged wrongful termination, harassment (including sexual harassment and hostile work environments), discrimination, retaliation, wrongful failure to employ or promote, wrongful discipline, failure to provide or enforce adequate or consistent policies or procedures, negligent supervision, or any employment-related misrepresentation, libel, slander, defamation, humiliation, mental anguish, invasion of privacy, or intentional infliction of emotional stress.



In other words; anything you could possibly do or not do and for which an employee can sue you. With that in mind, why would a business owner NOT have Employment Practices Liability insurance?



EPLI can also help protect your restaurant against conflicts that flare up between employees and third parties, such as vendors or customers, if a third-party coverage endorsement is secured as part of the EPLI policy.



Obviously the restaurant owner must weigh risks and costs very carefully. General Liability policies do not normally cover employment-related risks. If such risks are high, buying EPLI may be a wise decision. The life savings of the small business owner are often tied up in the business and need to be protected.



Penny Insurance Agency has been helping North Carolina restaurants and small businesses design cost effective insurance programs since 1931.







2 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing this post. I think because turnover is so high in the restaurant industry and because there is ample opportunity to find work, employees are more apt to abuse privileges, steal and do some of the other things employment practices liability can cover. Not to say every restaurant is filled with hoodlums, but it's hard to gauge someone's personality type when you're trying hard just to find qualified servers and kitchen help.

    Offering a scalable health insurance policy is one way to help retain employees, something we specialize in.

    http://www.floridahealthinsurancehq.com/

    Thanks,
    Nick

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  2. More great informaion that focuses attention on the nuance of the restaurant industry.

    More interesting reads at http://www.dagleyinsuranceblog.com

    ReplyDelete