š Overview
Every construction company runs on standards -- how you expect people to show up, communicate, handle conflicts, request time off, and represent the business on a job site. The problem is that those standards usually live in someone's head, scattered emails, or a PDF nobody can find. The Employee Handbook in Structur gives you a dedicated place to write, organize, and publish your company policies so every employee can access them anytime from within the platform.
The handbook is organized into chapters, and each chapter holds one or more sections of content. You control what gets published and what stays in draft. Employees see only the chapters you've published -- everything else stays invisible until you're ready. Once a chapter is published, your team can read it directly inside Structur without needing a separate document or link.
š Understanding the Employee Handbook
ā” What It Does
The Employee Handbook allows you and your team to:
Create chapters organized by topic -- onboarding, conduct, safety, benefits, or any category that fits your company
Write sections inside each chapter using a rich text editor with headings, lists, and formatted content
Control visibility by keeping chapters in Draft until they're ready, then publishing them for the whole team
Download chapters as files for offline use or external sharing
Duplicate chapters to use an existing structure as a starting point for a new one
Unpublish or delete chapters when content needs to be revised or retired
View the handbook as an employee to see exactly what your team sees before publishing
š When to Use It
The Employee Handbook is most valuable when you want to:
Give new hires a single place to find company policies during onboarding
Document expectations around conduct, communication, and safety in writing
Replace scattered emails and PDFs with a living document your team can always find
Update policies over time without reprinting or redistributing documents
Keep draft content private while you finalize it before sharing with the team
š Step-by-Step Instructions
1. Open the Employee Handbook
Click Company Operations in the left sidebar
Click Employee Handbook in the top navigation bar
The Employee Handbook index page shows all chapters with their current status. You can toggle between List and Grid view using the buttons in the top right.
2. Create a New Chapter
Click + New Chapter in the top right
Fill in the fields: Chapter Title (the name of this chapter, e.g. "Code of Conduct" or "Safety Policies"), Description (optional, a brief note about what this chapter covers), and Status (defaults to Draft; change to Published if you want it visible to employees immediately)
Click Create Chapter
Note: New chapters default to Draft status. Employees can't see Draft chapters. Keep chapters in Draft while you're building them out, then publish when the content is complete.
3. Add Sections to a Chapter
Sections are the individual content blocks inside a chapter. Each section has a title and rich text content.
Click the chapter name to open it
Click Edit in the top right to enter edit mode
Click + New Section at the bottom of the left panel
Fill in the fields: Section Title (e.g. "Attendance Policy" or "Dress Code") and Content (a rich text editor where you write the section content -- use the Heading dropdown and formatting toolbar to structure your text with headings, bullet lists, numbered lists, and checklists)
Click Add Section
The section appears in the left panel numbered in order (01, 02, 03...) and opens in the right panel for editing.
4. Edit and Organize Sections
With the chapter in edit mode, you can update any section directly in the right panel.
To edit a section: Click the section title in the left panel to load it in the right panel. Edit the title and content directly.
To reorder sections: Use the up and down arrow icons in the top right of the section card to move it up or down in the list.
To delete a section: Click the trash icon in the top right of the section card.
When you're done, click Save in the top right.
Note: The chapter view has two modes -- view mode and edit mode. Employees always see view mode. Click Edit to make changes and Save to lock them in.
5. Publish a Chapter
When a chapter is complete and ready for your team:
Option A -- From the index page: Click the three-dot menu on the chapter row, select Edit Details, change the Status to Published, then save.
Option B -- On creation: Set the Status dropdown to Published in the New Chapter modal before clicking Create Chapter.
Once published, the status badge turns green and shows Published. Employees can now read the chapter inside Structur.
6. Manage Chapters
The three-dot menu on each chapter row gives you five options: View (open the chapter in view mode), Edit Details (update the title, description, or status), Duplicate (create a copy with all its sections intact), Unpublish (return a published chapter to Draft status, hiding it from employees), and Delete (permanently remove the chapter and all its sections).
Note: Deleting a chapter is permanent. Use Unpublish if you want to hide a chapter temporarily while you revise it.
7. Download a Chapter
Open any chapter
Click Download in the top right
The chapter downloads as a file you can share externally or keep for your records.
ā Best Practices
Start with your most important chapters -- onboarding, safety, and conduct are the highest-priority chapters for most construction companies. Build those first and publish them before moving to lower-priority topics.
Keep chapters in Draft while building -- don't publish a chapter until all sections are complete and reviewed. Employees will see incomplete content if you publish too early.
Use sections to break up long content -- instead of writing one massive block of text, create a separate section for each policy or topic so employees can navigate to exactly what they need.
Use the View option before publishing -- click View from the three-dot menu to see the chapter exactly as employees will see it before you make it live.
Unpublish instead of delete when revising -- if a policy needs an update, unpublish the chapter, make your edits, then republish. Deleting removes the content permanently.
Use Duplicate to speed up similar chapters -- if several chapters share a similar structure, build one well and duplicate it as a starting point for the others.
ā Common Questions
Q: Where do employees access the Employee Handbook?
A: Employees find the handbook by clicking Company Operations in the left sidebar, then clicking Employee Handbook in the top navigation. They see only published chapters in view mode.
Q: Can employees edit the handbook?
A: Only users with edit permissions see the Edit button. Employees without edit permissions see the handbook in read-only view mode.
Q: What's the difference between Draft and Published?
A: Draft chapters are only visible to users with edit permissions. Published chapters are visible to all employees. New chapters default to Draft so you can build them out before anyone sees them.
Q: Can I unpublish a chapter after it's been published?
A: Yes. Click the three-dot menu on the chapter and select Unpublish. The chapter returns to Draft status and disappears from the employee view immediately.
Q: Can I reorder chapters on the index page?
A: Currently the chapter list displays in the order chapters were created. Reordering chapters on the index page is on the Structur roadmap.
Q: Can I have multiple sections in one chapter?
A: Yes. A chapter can hold as many sections as you need. Each section has its own title and rich text content, and sections are numbered in order within the chapter.
Q: What happens if I delete a chapter?
A: Deleting a chapter permanently removes it and all its sections. Use Unpublish instead if you want to hide the chapter temporarily while you revise it.
ā ļø Common Mistakes to Avoid
ā Don't | ā Do |
Publish a chapter before all sections are complete | Keep chapters in Draft until the content is fully reviewed |
Delete a chapter that just needs updating | Unpublish it, revise the sections, then republish |
Write all content in a single section | Use separate sections for each policy or topic |
Skip the View option before publishing | Always preview as an employee before making a chapter live |
Build every chapter from scratch | Duplicate a well-structured chapter as a starting point for similar ones |