So you’ve started working in a Human Resources department and you’re probably new or probably you’ve been in the profession for a while and you’re starting to see some things that aren’t quite adding up. Could it be that you’re working in an unethical Human Resources department? In HR, we’re supposed to be ethical because we have to make sure the company is in compliance as well as the employees are in sync with the goals of the organization. However there will be times that will seem a little bit unethical and downright dirty.
#1 Gossip
You got it! They have a tendency to gossip a lot and they don’t have a lot of positive things to say about their members within their existing department or anyone within the organization. No one is off limits including candidates, coworkers, and CEOs.
I’ve seen this time and time again there’s gossip going on about candidates and they’re so they’re searching their social media profiles just nitpicking at every little thing or members within the organization and maybe even people within the c-suite managerial positions director roles or even the CEO they always have a little bit of something negative to say about them and honestly that creates a very toxic work environment for you especially if you’re not a part of that gossip so it makes things a little bit difficult to navigate but that’s the number one sign that you’re working in an unethical organization.
#2 Retaliatory Behavior
We see a lot of times when employees come forward and they’re saying that things are not in compliance, whether it’s safety related, or procedures are not being followed. When those things are brought forward to management or to the HR department there seems to be retaliatory actions taken against that employee, even when there are protections and Whistleflower acts in place. There are incidents where a manager can use HR as a vessel or an instrument towards getting that employee out of the workplace.
#3 Lack of Documentation
There are times when processes and procedures that are undocumented. However in the HR profession is very critical for procedures to be followed and documented. But when you have a department that’s not willing to document or standardize different processes such as disciplinary actions surrounding harassment, etc; employee number one gets away with that behavior but employee number two does not. This means there’s a lot of things that are going on which really which leads to a lot of confusion and chaos. Ideally those processes should be standardized and streamlined across all employees with no exception.
#4 Untrustworthiness
When employees are afraid to come forward knowing they will have a target on their backs, this is a huge red flag. Once an organization has condoned the untrustworthy behavior, it’s difficult to fix on a solo level. Some organizations are willing to fix it, while others are not. It all depends on the organization that you’re working for. So if you are a candidate, it is critical that you ask how is the HR department is viewed in this organization. The answer will be indicative of how HR is perceived overall and if there are some issues going on that they’re really not interested in addressing.
#5 Toxic Work Environment
This includes work that’s being stolen, credit that’s being taken, all kinds of rampant crazy behavior going on within the department. Sometimes the manager is the toxic source. When these issues are left unaddressed like harassment charges all and discriminatory acts all of that stuff that exists, but they’re being swept underneath the rug then this is a place where your career could suffer.
#6 High Turnover
One of the critical questions that you should be asking during the interview process is to assure that the manager or the director is not churning people in and out of the department. So anyone and everyone who doesn’t agree with their mindset and their little ways of thinking are being terminated on false pretenses. High turnover would be six months to two years of or less. The manager will either have negative things to say or avoid the answer when they are asked about the previous individuals who worked with them.
#7 Lack of Information or No Records
There’s not a place for documents to be stored, nor are there places for resources to be found for the employees when they’re trying to enroll in benefits or if they need forms for injuries etc. Basically the HR department withhold information and they’re telling the staff to go figure it out for themselves. They would rather have zero processes documented and zero resources available to the staff because they figure the problems will resolve themselves. If the staff doesn’t talk about certain things, then they really wouldn’t exist.
#8 Can’t Be Trusted With Private Information
Now you know as an HR professional, you will be handling a lot of personal identifiable information. So it is so critical that you can be trusted. Unfortunately there are incidents of stalking either virtually or in person which is unnecessary. You do not need to stalk them online, you don’t need to drive by their house to see whether or not they’re working if you’re managing remote staff, you don’t need to hire a private investigator to verify that the employee is at work when they should be at work. I see this time and time again you’ll have human resources professionals even certified going through employees files looking up information about them for no reason trying to see where they live, what type of car do they drive, whether they are certified, and researching their pay grade. Honestly that is a huge no-no when it comes to working in the HR department.
#9 Hiring Practices Are Crap
We should know how to recruit and retain people. But you would be surprised with the numerous issues that exist in HR and the hiring practices are not exception. Some departments would rather hire people who agree with their agenda or hire their buddies, their spouses, or only people who they are familiar with. They lack diversity they don’t care about bringing anyone else into that department aside from who they are familiar with. They use crazy little tactics as far as skewing the numbers to say they tried to hire diverse people but uh we couldn’t find anybody so I guess we just give up on our diversity initiatives. This is a shame.
#10 They Have Been Sued
Last but not least on this list is the fact they have already been sued or have had an investigation. HR is not exempt from being sued personally or having the department sued, so keep that in mind. We have seen many cases where members of the human resources HR department have been sued for being unethical and illegal activities and they actually ended up in jail. As yourself if it’s really worth going to jail over and probably not.
Share your stories in the comments.