3 Ways Businesses Can Navigate Remote Work Compliance Correctly

The necessity for remote work compliance has grown quickly in these changing times. That difficulty is unlikely to disappear immediately—for many businesses, it may not even disappear at all. Even before this shift, there was a growing appreciation of the possibilities that remote work solutions presented.

Because of technological advances, virtual interactions were becoming more seamless. Prospective employers were profiting from the diminished significance of location in talent management. Now that business owners have restarted their cross-country routines and shifted to hybrid work, employers undoubtedly find that some previous in-office workers have been just as efficient during this at-home period as before the virus.

Are Remote Workers a Massive Liability or a Valuable Asset?

Allowing employees to work from home has several advantages for businesses, including cost savings and more flexible work schedules. However, organizations may face numerous compliance difficulties, so it’s critical to weigh the benefits of a remote workforce against the extra security measures that would be required. Remote working, sometimes known as ‘working from home,’ refers to any job done outside the workplace.

Business owners must remember that it will be the home for most employees, but it could also be a more public environment, such as a co-working space. Companies must increase their initiatives to ensure compliance risk is adequately minimized whenever work is undertaken off-site.

Remote Work Compliance Challenges 

1. Issues With Data and Security Compliance

When it comes to remote work compliance, businesses are accustomed to concentrating on their HR responsibilities. This includes employee categorization, home occupation licenses, and worker compensation. While all firms should consider these concerns, it’s also critical to stay on top of current data and security issues. When your employees work from home, the danger of these problems increases. You risk data loss if staff have access to sensitive information.

When your employees share personal information, the risks increase. Have a powerful data loss prevention (DLP) plan at all times. While developing this plan, remember that discussion and adherence are as important as the paperwork. You must perform DLP at all times, and your policy must be written to eliminate room for error.

2. Activity Monitoring Issues 

You may monitor employee activity online using various technologies, including the Internet, work chatrooms, workplace collaboration tools, social networking sites, and messages.

What behavior should you look for? When using communication methods and enterprise software, you should monitor chats, inappropriate behavior, and data loss. You should check your website for updates or edits you haven’t made yet. You must gather this information to comply with record-keeping rules.

Ways to Navigate Remote Work Compliance 

1. Categorise Your Employees Properly

Ensure your workers are accurately classified to guarantee that the various criteria for correct adherence can be satisfied in a remote location. If you’re working with freelancers, for example, consider how much access they have to your internal documents and Slack channels. Is it necessary for them to have complete access to everything? Make sure non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) that cover you are binding and present and that their contracts cover secrecy.

If you operate in a highly regulated field like financial services, remember that the law requires regulated employees’ communications to be archived. It’s critical to understand which of your employees are subject to regulation and implement a system for compliant record-keeping that works remotely. All the communications of high-level managers (and workers who handle susceptible material) are routinely captured and kept on legal hold within large corporations. Ensure that your setup is ready for remote working once more.

2. Make a Work Schedule

Every company should have a remote work plan and a remote work policy. Identify all employees’ tasks and any potential modifications that remote work may bring, such as tasks you may have to forego. If you have a large staff, you can determine the responsibilities of each department. Consider any potential consequences and solutions. Always have a backup plan for technical help.

Determine the most effective means for employees to work collaboratively. Schedule virtual meetings regularly. Draft means for everyone who enters the workplace or worksite to distance themselves and work safely. Ensure all training, including training courses and work productivity tools, is completed. Ask your employees if they’ve ever worked remotely; if not, you may need them to complete additional training, such as privacy and compliance training.

3. Implement a Code of Conduct 

The code of conduct at your organization outlines how you and other workers should behave daily. In a remote work setting, the company’s key standards that guide choices and standards of behavior still apply. Adherence to these rules is ensured by preserving professionalism and managing colleagues, clients, and vendors like before remote work.

The shift to remote employment does not diminish the value of a company’s compliance program. Consistent compliance messaging is even more important when staff is dispersed. You can implement online compliance training to keep compliance processes up to date, even if your employees are working remotely for a lengthy period of time.

Work From Home Tips for Employees to Ensure Remote Work Compliance 

Since few people care to reset their router credentials, cybercriminals target default credentials, leaving Wi-Fi routers vulnerable to breaches. A simple action to secure your Wi-Fi router from malicious attackers who want entry to your devices is to change your router’s passcode from the standard to something unique. While switching between devices to pay a bill or shop online may seem inconvenient, try your best to maintain your work laptop and personal computer separately.

You rarely know if you’ve been hacked. If your personal or work computer has been compromised, this can help contain the quantity of sensitive data revealed. It’s critical to remember that working from home means working from home; you shouldn’t undertake company business in cafes, internet hotspots, hotels, bookstores, or other public locations.

Other tips include:

• The working location should be ring-fenced from other family and friends at home to avoid unintended personal information leakage. 
• Employees should not print documents at home unless their managers and the Compliance and Information Security departments have given their specific permission.
• Calls between team members and clients should be handled with the same level of secrecy as in the office, and the “don’t ask, don’t tell” rule should be followed.
• Workers should consult their relevant manager or the compliance team if they are unsure about anything before taking action.

Conclusion

Compliance with remote work is a requirement that isn’t going away. Working from home is the (new) standard. However, videoconferencing programs aren’t enough to ensure remote work compliance. It necessitates a solid grasp of your current workforce and a detailed plan of where and how you intend to expand.

Team productivity tools could be a measure to ensure compliance. Doing it this way will ensure you can properly monitor and fulfill your compliance responsibilities for employees, regardless of their location on the virtual office spectrum.