Among today’s workforce, there is a growing cynicism about whose needs Human Resource Departments really serve. According to an article which appeared on the Psychology Today website, many workers don’t follow the advice of career advisors by going to HR because they believe that by doing it can make the situation even worse in the long run. According to columnist Ronald E. Riggio, Ph.D. it is true that sometimes HR professionals forget that their purpose is to help not just the interests of the employer but the worker as well.
The best human resource departments are engaged and truly care about the advancement and welfare not only of the company’s interests but those of workers as well. He also suggests that there are a number of behaviors for workers to look out for that may indicate whether or not their own HR department might be falling down on the job.
Here are some more of his suggestions:
- They forget who they serve – HR departments should not view workers as a problem. Those who demonstrate a sincere idea of helping employees to excel wherever possible should be the rule rather than the exception.
- Workers having to HR’s tasks for them – HR shouldn’t have workers do things like write their own job descriptions. If your HR department doesn’t understand current legislation or what’s going on in the world of work, there can definitely be a problem.
- Display an Us vs. Them attitude – HR often has to enforce policies on both sides of the equation. Solutions need to be equitable and fair and rather than focusing on the negatives, focus on the positive aspects of keeping dialogue between all parties open and reaching equitable solutions.
Overall, Human Resource Professionals need to be able to be effective mediators between workers and companies to ensure positive outcomes for everyone involved.