John Hayes

GOLD

In Defence of HR – John Hayes Writes for Personnel Today

By John Hayes

– posted 8 months ago

The criticism of HR, levied by the Sunday Times as a bloated, obstructive force in UK business, overlooks a deeper truth: HR has grown because modern work has changed.

John Hayes, founder and managing partner at Constantine Law, writes in for Personnel Today in defence of HR (25 September). He believes that the rise in HR professionals is a response to a more rights-aware, expressive workforce, whose exercising of those rights is amplified by social media and tech platforms. HR now navigates this culture shift alongside the growing complexity of the world of work in the 21st century.

As the government shifts more responsibility for public health onto employers, HR is expected to take the lead on employee wellbeing and occupational health. The evidence is clear: when wellbeing is supported, productivity rises.

HR isn’t the cause of complexity—it’s the bridge between what employees expect and what businesses can realistically deliver.

You can read John’s full article here.