Reflecting on 2010, it was easy to notice significant changes in human resources. First we had Health Care Reform to address, and at nearly the same time, companies scrambled to put Social Media policies in place as issues arising from employees’ use of social media began to spill over into the workplace. Now the question becomes, “what does the next year have in store for human resources?”
By looking at some of the trends over the last few years, we can make some assumptions about where we should be focusing our time as human resource professionals and what we can do to stay on top of them.
Overall, our workforce is aging. People are working longer for a variety of reasons, ranging from a fear that the Social Security benefit age will rise, to a desire to remain engaged in work they enjoy, to the reality that some face, following the economic crash that wiped out retirement funds. With the stock market’s roller coaster, many folks are worried that they will not have enough time to increase or replenish the size of their nest egg, most of which is in a company-sponsored 401(k) plan.
Whether by choice or necessity, the delay in retirement for older employees introduces a host of new challenges for employers. Effective safety programs will become even more important for employers to have in place for their worksite. According to an article by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, older workers are likely to be more severely injured or die in work-related instances than younger workers. With this in mind, we all need to make sure we are mitigating our risk by implementing safety programs, working closely with our workers’ compensation carriers to minimize claims and do a better job overall of educating our managers, supervisors and employees on workplace risks.
We have also seen an increased number of employment regulations over the last few decades that have increased the challenges for employers. Human Resources ideally acts as a neutral party for both employer and employee, and it’s extremely important to stay up-to-date on the continual changes within the regulatory environment. This is critical to ensure that employers keep legal and penalty costs down, but more importantly, retain their top talent in an environment that is supportive for people and compliant with legal expectations.
It’s clear that the employment regulatory changes will not subside any time soon; rather, we can expect ongoing changes and additions to employment law. HR Directors and Managers should do their part to keep a close eye on all of those changes. Going to ‘legislative update’ seminars and keeping a human resource consulting firm on the other end of the line can help save time and reduce costs over the long-term.
Our interactions with coworkers both in and out of the workplace will also continue to increase as employees continue to build relationships with one another via ever expanding channels. Social media has played a large role in the increased interaction of employees outside of the workplace. Workplace issues will inevitably arise as co-worker relationships become stronger and more frequent.
This year [2011] may be a great year to send managers and supervisors to trainings on performance planning, harassment in the workplace, HR basics, employee counseling and many others that can enhance their skills and knowledge to empower their employees and create a collaborative environment. There is no sure-fire technique that will eliminate all employee issues and create the perfect working environment for everyone, but knowing how to handle tough situations as they arise makes for great managers and supervisors.
Given the fact that employment laws are constantly changing, employees are interacting with each other even more than in the past and the workforce is gradually getting older, it is understandable that the future of HR will be very complex and will require even more training and education. Many resources are available for human resource directors and managers through SHRM, human resource consulting firms like Xenium, and legal firms. Utilizing these resources will help employers stay out of compliance trouble while maintaining a great working environment for employees.
