Every industry, every business, and every manager has their own rules for their staff members and employees; so having a salon employee handbook in your salon business is essential.

In modern education, people have been taught since kindergarten to follow a specific set of rules and socially accepted practices to keep everyone save and avoid conflict.

What You Will Learn?

Smile and greet salon clients. Tempting as it can be when you’re busy don’t pick up the phone, turn. Reiki 3 Manual Pdf Print Shortcut Key Windows 7 Batch File Commands Windows 10 Download Transtool For Windows 10 Brother Printer Updates For Mac Hide My Ip Torrent Crack Salon Front Desk Training Manual Hotpoint Manuals User Manuals Navisworks 2016 Free Download Java 6.0 Update 17 Download. Salon Receptionist responsibilities include greeting customers upon their arrival, answering clients’ questions about services via phone, email or in person and processing transactions. To be successful in this role, you should be highly organized and able to manage clients with grace, even during peak demand.

In this article you will learn how to get a wonderful salon's working team. Belliata Salon Software created a free template to download and use for your hair salon.

Jump To The Section You Like

How can you maintain the same kind of order for all those in your salon’s working team?

It’s simple: put a set of salon policies and procedures into place.

Your goal for your salon employee handbook should be pretty straightforward – rules for hair salon employees will keep their behavior in check, manage staff expectations, and keep the salon in harmony.

It’s not easy to write a professional hair salon rules for employees.

That’s why Belliata Salon Software has a come up with a quick list of the things you need to know as a salon owner to help you write your salon employee handbook.

We’ve also attached a free salon employee handbook at the end of this page for your reference.

Quick and easy tips on making your rules effective

As the leader of the salon, you have a responsibility of keeping everything in check and making sure that the rules are enforced.

If rules are written down on paper without enforcement, it’ll be just like having no rules at all. Here are a few points to remember to help your staff understand what you expect of them:

• Enforce your rules, let employees know that there will be ramifications if the rules aren’t being followed
• Keep a note of who doesn’t follow rules, so you know the root cause of ant conflict and can take care of it effectively
• Provide your employees with the rules, and let them sign the salon employee handbook and contract
• Have a mutual understanding, of what you expect from your employees but also what they can expect from you

In short, a salon that doesn't have a salon employee handbook encourages them to make up their own rules. If each individual employee has their own definition of what should and should not be expected from each other, this will led to conflict.

Conflict in the workplace will almost always decrease productivity. This could negatively affect the working atmosphere, customer service, and incur huge financial losses to you.

Make you salon rules and stick to them.

What to include in an introduction for your salon manual

First of all, before the actual hair salon policies and procedures begin remember to welcome them to the company. Employees will be much more receptive to salon employment handbook if it starts off on a welcoming and positive note.

In case they don't know already, introduce your new staff members to the company mission and vision. You can also add a personal note when talking about the company's history and culture.

It may also be a good idea to add a disclaimer in the first part of the salon and spa employee handbook. This clause would be designed to protect you and entitle you to make any necessary changes to the salon employee policy manual down the line.

How to clearly define employee status and roles in your hair salon handbook

We understand that there are many different jobs in a beauty spa and salon business. You could have receptionists at the front desk, massage therapists who operate treatment rooms, hair stylists, nail stylists, team managers, or any other roles you may have in your business.

With so many roles, it is crucial that you clearly define the responsibilities of each of these types of jobs. For example, receptionists may have responsibilities such as appointment making, product promotion, and changing shop displays. You may also require therapists to wear different kinds of clothing to hair stylists.

In addition to job roles, employees could also be classified by job status. These could include classifications such as part time, full time, probationary, temporary, salary, or commission based employees.

It is important to clearly define the conditions that prescribe employees into which of these categories, so you can offer different compensation packages and benefits to different employees. Also note that it is possible for employees to fall into multiple categories.

Probationary periods are a useful clause to include in your salon employee handbook policies.

A probationary period allows you to test if a new hire is suitable for the job for a certain period of time without offering any benefits. You can find more information with the example of a salon employee handbook at the end of this page.

Decide what employment policies to include in the beauty salon rules and regulations

The employment policies of the salon employment handbook are designed to protect new applicants from undue prejudice.

This could include clauses that protect employees from discrimination and only hire or dismiss employees based on merit and work performance. New employees should also be given orientation on their first day of work to familiarize themselves with the workplace and their fellow members of staff.

This section of the beauty salon employee handbook would also be used to provide instructions on how to deal with work related injuries, personal work safety, and address privacy concerns.

You should assure that all their personal information is strictly confidential, but also require them to report any changes to that information in a timely manner.

Safety and security of the staff should also be of utmost important. In order to comply with local and national provisions, you should provide extensive guidelines on the standards of safety that you expect from your employees. This could include the safe operation of heat emitting or electric powered tools, all equipment must be disinfected before and after use, know the location of fire safety equipment and emergency exits, as well as a clean and clear working environment to prevent accidents.

What to include in the salon code of conduct

The code of conduct in the salon employee handbook should ideally be the most detailed part of the salon employee policies and procedures . This is the part that governs the day to day operation of your spa and salon business and keeps employee behavior in check. These general guidelines should include topics such as:

Some examples of hair salon policies for employees to include in your handbook

• Attendance and absenteeism
• Lateness and punctuality
• Meal times and break periods
• Working schedules of different employee classifications
• General harassment, violence and sexual harassment policies
• Disclosure and protection of confidential information
• Ethical and moral code
• Use of technology and equipment while on duty
• Smoking, alcohol, and drug use policy (medical or otherwise)
• Reporting standards for gifts and entertainment
• Making complaints or reports to management
• Salon rules and regulations for clients
• Transfers, promotions, and demotions
• Administrative and disciplinary actions
• Policies on external employment
• Exit and resignation procedures

Make sure you clearly define the scope and definition of each of your rules. You should also check that none of your rules or definitions of your rules conflict with any local or national laws.

For more specific examples, please refer to the free beauty salon employee handbook attached at the end of this page.

Salon Front Desk Training Manual Free

How to determine the salon dress code policy

It’s not easy to determine the dress code for your employees and there’s definitely no one set of clothes that are suitable for all the roles in a salon and spa facility.

You may have different clothing requirements for a nail stylist than a hair stylist. It pays off to think hard about what kind of image you want to give your customers.

Salons often require their staff to dress professionally and adequately for the job they are performing. For example, you may want your receptionist to dress in smart business attire, while a massage therapist may be required to wear an apron and a mask.

If there is a role that requires uniforms to be worn, make sure you define whether it is company property or not and how you expect your staff to care for it.

What compensation rules to consider for salon policies for employees

The salon employee handbook should include a detailed section on employee compensation to avoid any financial conflicts down the line. This should be written to protect the employee so they are paid a fair wage and to protect your interests as an employer to prevent unfair or illegal claims against you.

Apart from base compensation and basic salaries, consider how you would award bonuses to employees with outstanding performances. Design these in a way to encourage employee productivity and customer satisfaction. Outline how and which employees are eligible for overtime pay.

For example, part time employees and hourly wage workers may be entitled to overtime pay but full time staff on monthly salaries may not be entitled to the same overtime benefits.

Manage staff expectations and let them know how they will be paid. How often will payment be made, on a weekly or monthly basis?

Which day of the week will they be paid on may depend on your accounting procedures. Would you consider different payment frequencies for part time and full time staff?

How would you pay them? You could use means such as cheque, cash, electronic payment, wire transfers, or company stock options. Decide on your payment frequency and means carefully as this would impact your salon’s cash flow.

What benefits you could provide in your hair salon policies for employees

If you offer any non monetary benefits to your employees, it might be a good idea to let them know if they are eligible. As mentioned before, you may separate your employees into different groups and that could affect their eligibility for certain benefits.

That’s why it is important to clearly set out which classification of employees are eligible for which benefits.

Your salon could provide benefits such as:

• Worker injury compensation, may be required by local laws to ensure that all costs of work related injuries are covered by the employer.
• Contributions to retirement funds, could increase employee loyalty and reduce staff turnover, minimizing recruitment costs.
• Employee discounts, reduce the incentive for employee theft.
• Unemployment benefits, to protect employees if they are laid off for financial reasons.
• Further education funds, to encourage employees to take on new skills relevant to the salon’s line of work so customers have more services to choose from.
• Continued professional development, to make sure staff are up to date with all new industry standards and services.

Salon handbook ideas for time off and vacation benefits

There are many different reasons on why an employee may need time off from work and it is your responsibility as an employer to provide different types or paid and unpaid leave to suit these situations.

Your salon’s policies for time off could include holidays and vacations, sick leave, jury duty, maternity leave, bereavement leave, medical and disability leave, personal or medical leave, and leave for military service.

Regardless of the type of leave, make sure you clearly define which kinds situations fall under which types of leaves and the procedures to apply for leave.

You may also want to specify how many days of paid and unpaid leave different types of employees are entitled to.

Guidelines for booth rental agreement and booth rent salon rules

Salon owners in the US may have a booth rental system in place for individual hair stylists. As the salon owner, you may want to set some guidelines for these independent professionals that are not your employees. These standards may include rules that help create a uniform appearance and procedures on conflict resolution between different parties.

This can greatly enhance the working relationship of those who rent a booth and increase positive customer perception. For more information, please check out the commission stylist employee handbook sample at the end of this page.

Salon rules for stylists’ expenses

There could be different occasions for your company to reimburse employees for expenses, for example in business events, further education, or unforeseen circumstances.

While international telephone calls may require prior approval from a supervisor, transportation expenses for late night shifts may need to be reimbursed afterwards. Make sure there are clear procedures in place to approve or claim expenses.

There should also be a clause that clearly states which job roles are authorized to incur inventory and services expenses on the salon’s behalf.

For example, the receptionist may be responsible for ordering inventory, but a stylist that has run out of back bar stock may need to inform the front desk and not be allowed to order on their own discretion. This would help reduce duplicate orders and minimize wastage in the salon.

Salon employee policies on maintaining open channels of communication

A lot of common employee-employer issues can be prevented with effective channels of communication. Open channels of communication should be put in place to allow employees to voice their concerns and discontent directly to management without fear of retribution.

After all, a salon’s success is dependent on employee performance and customer satisfaction. Satisfied employees are more likely to provide better services than disgruntled staff.

Your salon employee handbook could include staff meetings, anonymous suggestion boxes, and internal email memos and notices.

Key points to remember for you salon policy handbook

Make sure your salon employee handbook is written in clear and simple language. Its terms have to be well defined so that there’s no doubt about company policies.

Also remember to be fair to your employees, they expect to be treated fairly and will work hard in return.

Free hair salon operations manual PDF

Still need ideas for writing your salon employee handbook? There are a lot of free salon employee handbook sample available for download, but you might still want some examples on what content to include.

Belliata Salon Software knows that it can be difficult to start writing your own handbook, so we are giving you a running start with a free salon employee handbook example.

A hair salon employee handbook template could help you if you are stuck. To download your salon employee handbook PDF, please visit: belliatasalonsoftware.com

And if you love these ideas or have some other ideas that you've used in the past to promote your salon business, why not share it with the Belliata community in the comment section below. We would also be delighted to answer your questions, as well.

Chapter 2: Hiring and Training Employees

Almost everything in your salon business depends upon the competency of your employees; therefore, the people you hire and the way in which you train them is critical to your success. The idea is to find employees who are going to earn their wages, not just collect them.

Hiring individuals with good personalities and good work ethics truly can increase your sales. Customers feel more comfortable, secure and happy when someone who is friendly and capable is aiding them. The employee becomes even more important if you add retail merchandise to your salon.

Finding Good Employees

Hair Salon Front Desk Jobs

The most common way to find employees is to place a newspaper advertisement. However, in order to attract the type of people you want to hire, you must stipulate your high standards in the ad. Mention that you are seeking an inside sales person with flexible hours in a pleasant, business atmosphere. Mentioning the word 'business' right off the bat indicates to a potential applicant that he or she will need a professional attitude in order to land this job.

It is also good to indicate that good phone skills are needed, as well as having excellent rapport with clients. Mention the importance of appearance as well. Being in the beauty/health field, it is important to have attractive, neat, fit employees. This alone can create a salon image.

Always keep your eyes open for potential employees. Health clubs and beauty salons are good places to find people who can convey the image you desire. Employees have been known to quit without warning, so when you come across someone you like and they express an interest in working for you, take their name and number and begin a file. Then it will be easier to find the right person without going to the trouble of advertising when you need to.

Waitresses also are good candidates for potential employees. If they work in a restaurant that's only open for dinner, there's a chance they might need a daytime job. So if you're out eating and encounter a waitress who's attractive, neat, attentive, personable and provides good service, ask her if she'd be interested in discussing employment with you.

Your competitors' businesses also are good places to look, especially if the defecting employee brings a copy of the customer list with them. If you come across an exceptional employee while shopping your competitors, make an offer, but keep in mind that there may be some drawbacks. If your operating style is drastically different from that of your competitor, you may encounter unexpected difficulties. The employee may have been trained to work a certain way, and old habits are sometimes hard to break. The employee also may have been trained to operate and explain different equipment.

Always conduct interviews in your salon and allow the potential employee to take a session as part of the interview. Even if you don't hire the person, you may gain a customer. By doing this, you also may see how they react to the equipment and how well they understand its function.

Make sure you go over your requirements and expectations; they must be perfectly clear from the beginning. A lack of communication is the most common source of problems in an employee-employer relationship. Prepare a written job description and emphasize selling retail items, as well as tanning and/or add-on services as a primary responsibility.

Allow potential employees to do some of the talking because this is one of the best ways for you to get a feel for their personality and ideas. Do some role playing; pretend you are the customer and let them interact with you. Act as a customer coming out of an initial tanning session, and let them try to sell you a package or a product. This can give you an idea of how well they will function on the job. If they are excessively timid when role playing, it's likely that they will act the same way when it comes to the real thing.

The Training Process

After hiring, break the employee in slowly. Pushing too hard may cause a person with excellent work potential to become frustrated and discouraged.

First, give employees a package of literature from the manufacturer or manufacturers of your tanning units. They also should be given copies of your ads, fliers, customer cards, daily record sheets and any other forms they will be expected to fill out. Have them read chapters of this book and copies of the trade journals and explain that it is imperative that they read all the information carefully. Review each form step by step and have them spend the day studying them, preferably in the salon so they can ask you questions at any time.

Allow them to listen, on an extension, to inquiries you handle on the phone, and explain why you said what you did immediately afterward. Remember, there is no better teacher than hands-on experience. Don't expect them to get the hang of it the first few times--you probably didn't even do that. Allow them to go through the phone procedure with you for the first few days as practice makes perfect and builds confidence.

Supply the new employee with a list of the questions most commonly asked by customers, and give them the answers, along with a detailed explanation of why they are answered that way. You may want to give them a quiz at the end of their training period, just to be sure they are capable of being left on their own in the salon.

Cleaning duties can be a touchy subject, so be sure to specify your expectations in the very beginning. Don't wait until after you've hired the person to explain that some cleaning duties are required. It's possible they wouldn't have been as interested in the job if they had known this and, if that's the case, concealing the fact won't make them any more receptive to it.

Employees always should clean equipment thoroughly after each use. The cleaning may sound simple, but you must emphasize that it needs to be done carefully and properly. Explain why it is necessary and what the possible consequences are if it is done improperly. Go through the procedure a few times for the tanning units, then have them do it while you're watching. Don't be afraid to criticize; it is important that this procedure be done right.

Let your employees know that you expect them to keep the reception desk as tidy as possible since this usually is the first impression clients get when they enter the salon. If it is messy or dirty, the client automatically will jump to the conclusion that the rest of the salon is the same way.

Be sure to stress to your employees the importance of enforcing the salon's rules. Tell them they are never to extend tanning times or to allow clients to tan without protective eyewear. Make sure they understand why, and are able to explain the dangers of such practices to your clients.

The dress code for the salon is up to the individual salon owner. If you are trying to portray an image of individuality in your salon, your employees should do the same. You may want to set certain guidelines, like khaki shorts and pastel-colored shirts, just to keep the general image the same, but it's not usually necessary. Clothing can be fun, but should never be risqué. Also, keep in mind that it should be loose and comfortable enough to allow ease of movement when cleaning equipment.

If you find a good employee who you feel will stay with the salon for some time, consider taking the employee to one of the trade associations' training programs. The depth of knowledge that is presented, as well as the opportunity to network with other salon owners and employees, is invaluable. If you can't justify the travel expenses for any of your employees, still give serious thought to going yourself. The knowledge you gain, as well as the training manual, will be an asset to your in-salon training program. Another, less expensive alternative is a correspondence training course offered by some of the associations.

Employee Relations

Rapid employee turnover is something all businesses want to avoid. In addition to being costly in money and time, it also can cause problems with other employees and client relations. In order to minimize this problem treat your employees well.

Being considerate and generous to an employee will encourage him or her to do more for you. Treat your employees in the same manner in which you wish to be treated--with fairness and dignity. However, if an employee has become very negative and doesn't seem receptive to reconciliation, get that person out of the salon. The negative attitude will be transferred to other employees and to customers, causing a great deal of damage to the salon's morale and image.

An open communication policy can solve many problems before they develop into major issues. Talking to your employees is of primary importance, and let them know how you feel about their performances. If they are doing a good job, tell them. If their performances are slipping a bit, let them know you are concerned, and would like to know if there is some way you could help get them get back on track.

If you have students working in your salon, school usually takes precedence over work. Make every effort to accommodate their special needs and try to develop a schedule that will work smoothly for them. If this is not acceptable to you, don't hire students. However, at the same time, they should be made aware of the special needs of your salon, and that you are operating a business.

There is a fine line between being friendly with your employees and still maintaining your authority. Socializing after work hours should be limited. However, eating lunch together, when possible, is a good way to bridge any communication gaps that may exist.

Try to be at the salon as much as possible since this lends itself to better employee relations, as well as better client relations. Employees generally are more responsible, and clients feel more secure when there is an authority figure present, and it creates a more professional atmosphere.

Allow your employees to tan free. This offers incentive to them and gives them real experience with the equipment, while helping you maintain salon image. You also may want to give their family members a 50-percent discount. If you spell out a policy on how much family members pay, you avoid having your employees 'guess' what it is. If you sell lotions and clothing, give your employees a discount. They will probably wear the clothes while working in the salon, and this gives your retail side a boost. Your clients are more likely to notice the clothing on your employees than they are on the racks.

Motivating Your Employees

Motivation seems to be big money these days. In fact, a huge industry revolves around it. There are tapes, seminars and in-depth clinics devoted to the subject. Some help devise programs to motivate a sales staff, others teach managers to motivate their employees and still others coach people in all walks of life to motivate themselves. None of this is free. Motivational assistance, be it taped or in person, commands a hefty price. Why is that? It's simple: motivation is big money because it can help a business bring in big money.

No matter what business you're in, it's a proven fact that motivated employees are more productive than their ambivalent counterparts. People who want to do something and want to do it well will do a better job than those whose main interest is just getting it done. Motivation is very important because motivated employees make the salon money.

However, experts warn that a motivation program must be more than just a reward system for exceptional sales and customer service efforts. Although rewards should play a role in the overall program, it's crucial for the working environment itself to be motivating.

One thing often overlooked in creating such an environment is the existence of detailed job descriptions. Because it's much easier to do a job when you know exactly what is expected, it's important for employees to know what they can and can't do. Poor understanding of what is expected will tend to detract from the quality and quantity of work produced, as will job descriptions that require an employee to be doing two things at once.

In a tanning salon, no assistance is required while customers are using the equipment, so one or two employees can handle customer service simultaneously and many administrative and maintenance duties.

However, if you offer ancillary services such as nails, day spa amenities, hair services or nutritional supplements, the necessary work can be broken down into two and possibly three specific positions, and one person is going to have a tough time doing all three. After all, one person cannot be the ideal front desk receptionist, properly attend to clients and conduct salon tours and program explanations, all at once.

Another element to creating a good, motivating working environment is you, the salon owner. One of the best things you can do is be there yourself, setting a good example. In addition to being there, you should make the employees feel that they are a part of the business. If they can see how their job fits into the overall function of the business, they'll be much more likely to want to do a good job.

Salon Front Desk Training Manual 2019

And even better than just letting them see how the overall salon goals are set and achieved is having them take part in the process. Don't fall into the trap of assuming that employees are only working for a paycheck; feelings of involvement and accomplishment actually may be more important considerations. Motivation comes from belief in a process or product. The more involved the employees are, the more they'll believe.

Incentives And Rewards

When designing an incentive program for your employees, don't limit yourself to cash or percentage rewards. Although they can be effective, money isn't always the best incentive. It is important to appreciate employees in the way they want to be appreciated. Non-monetary rewards can be aimed at three different kinds of personalities: feeling, logical and action types. Each type will be best motivated by a different reward.

The first group--the feeling type of person--is best motivated by recognition and by some demonstration that they are valued. Rewards that provide the best incentive are things like a plaque on the wall in the salon, employee of the month awards, mention in a customer newsletter, flowers and similar approaches.

The second group--the logical employees--need to have quantitative goals to achieve. They like to see exactly where they stand, be it on a board or graph in the office or whatever. Then they can mark their progress against the chart, striving to reach a clearly defined target.

Finally, the active type of employee isn't motivated by money so much as by what it enables him to do. That is to say, money is a means, not an end. It makes sense that the way to focus this person on a goal is to reward its achievement with fun, active things. A few examples might be tickets to concerts or sporting events, mini-vacations, restaurant gift certificates and similar activities.

The key in all cases is to make sure the reward is something that the person values. If you don't present the goal and reward in the employee's language and value system they either won't see it or will become confused.

Also be aware that few people fit exactly into one category; most are a combination of more than one. Take some time to observe and evaluate what kind of people your individual employees are before structuring an incentive program.

Yet, your employees should be made to understand that their paycheck is their reward for meeting their job requirements. Be sure to set their goals beyond that minimum. That is to say, they are only entitled to a bonus reward if they go beyond what already is expected.

Finally, you can't motivate your employees to achieve specific goals until you have some for the salon yourself. A problem in the tanning industry is that many salon owners never define their mission.

The salon's goals may be to reach a certain dollar figure in accessory sales. They may be to achieve a certain percent occupancy. They may be to increase the number of three-times-a-week tanners by a specific amount, or even to increase the number of referrals by a set factor. Hopefully, the goals of your salon touch on all of these areas. In the course of achieving them, however, keep the salon's focus consistent. If you're adding accessory lines, make sure they fit in; don't dilute your purpose.

Salon Front Desk Training Manual 2018

The importance of setting up a detailed program to motivate salon employees cannot be denied. In so doing, the salon owner makes a statement about what is valued, be it increased sales, improved customer service or, better still, both. It's been demonstrated time and time again that motivated employees are productive employees. Productive employees will, by definition, bring more income into the salon, and that's what it's all about.