Last night, in a bold move, Republicans voted 18-1 to strip collective bargaining rights from many of Wisconsin's public employees (remember that Police and Firefighters were not part of this bill).  Gov. Walker, in addressing this end run, stated:

In order to move the state forward, I applaud the Legislature's action today to stand up to the status quo and take a step in the right direction to balance the budget and reform government. The action today will help ensure Wisconsin has a business climate that allows the private sector to create 250,000 new jobs.

While I am a simple HR professor, I am curious what kind of business climate he has fomented that will not only create 250,000 new jobs, let alone find the bodies to fill them?

1.  He has already rejected $810 million from the Federal Government to support a high speed rail from Milwaukee to Madison, a project that could've created 13,000 jobs
2.  His new budget cuts $834 million from education, a move that will, no doubt, impel many long-time quality educators to take early retirement as well as force schools to layoff or fire many other employees to meet budgets.

So far, I'm seeing jobs being destroyed, not being created.  Leaving the previous points aside, if I am a business looking to relocate, or an investor looking to put my money somewhere:
1.  Is Wisconsin stock now rising?
2. Do I want to put my time, energy, and resources into an economy with an angry electorate?  
3. Will I expect my labor force to be better prepared for the working world when class sizes will continue to grow and quality teachers will inevitably look elsewhere for employment?
4.  Where are the quality employees going to come from, particularly since more and more employers are not even looking at individuals who are unemployed?
5.  Wisconsin has already been experiencing a perceived "brain drain" problem.  Will the current events improve or exacerbate this issue?



From the employee side, what do people look for from a job?  A 2007 survey by the Center for Excellence in State and Local Government Excellence (while somewhat dated, I would expect the results to be similar today) indicated the top 4 items desired:
1.   Health insurance - For public sector employees in Wisconsin, this has certainly gotten weaker.
2.   Having job security - again, the actions of last night have made this weaker
3.  Being in an environment with clear policies and procedures - certainly with collective bargaining rights being stripped, many public employees now have less voice in how those policies will be made.
4.  The retirement plan - again, it has become a less attractive commodity in Wisconsin

If I am an education major, will I want to go work for a Wisconsin school district where budgets are tighter than ever before and I have less rights, less benefits, and have been demonized by my state government?  Who is going to find working for Wisconsin schools suddenly more attractive? If I am looking to relocate my family, will I be looking to move to Wisconsin, in light of recent events?

At the HREvolution Unconference last May, I was challenged by a certain Trench HR professional, despite my Ph.D. in Human Resource Management and SPHR certification, that my credibility in the field was limited since I was not a "true" HR professional. Shhh....I have a secret....

I have been practicing HR in my job as a professor for over 15 years. How so?

Recruitment and Selection - As an advisor to the student SHRM chapter, I am always trying to find new members to join the organization. In addition, I have served on several faculty and staff search committees.

Managing Turnover - Unlike many organizations, my turnover rate is highly predictable. Students WILL graduate. As a result, I have to repeatedly build and rebuild our SHRM student chapter as new members of the e-board join the group.

Training - Through the design of appropriate curricula, I facilitate the learning of job-related knowledge, skills, and behavior by students. Syllabi try to meet the ADDIE model.

Performance Management - Through the grading of exams, papers, and other work, I am constantly providing feedback and knowledge of results to students throughout a semester. In addition, syllabi have to be clear with regards to performance standards.

Career Development - I meet regularly with students to help prepare them for their future career. Our college devotes two days a semester for advising students not only on their next semester's schedule, but on their plans post-college. In addition, I serve as the graduate school advisor for our department

Counseling Employees - Its not uncommon to receive e-mails and in-office visits throughout the day and into the night from students requesting help to deal with sickness, injury, and even death. Similarly, I have to deal with poor performing students and try to help them improve.

Benefits - For the past 7 years, I have served on the college's Benefits Advisory Committee. We assist the college in making decisions regarding health care, insurance, retirement, and other benefits. In addition, I serve on the wellness subcommittee as the college looks to improve employees' health.

Harassment - I have also served on our college's Harassment Resource Committee. This committee assists the college in dealing with harassment-related issue and helped form the consensual relationship policy

Mediation - I have served as chair for the Faculty Mediation Committee. The function of the Faculty Mediation Committee is to mediate individual complaints against behavior and decisions arguably inconsistent with the Faculty Constitution and the Faculty Policy Statement.

In sum, my job IS human resources