systematicHR

Is there anything worth while about compliance reporting?  We do EEO1s, OFCCP, VETS, and do we get anything good out of it?  Lets face it, while there might be some slam modicum of insight coming out of these reports that help us look at the demographics of our organizations, I believe that even the most basic of talent management reports far surpass the value coming out of these compliance reports.  The only reason we have compliance reports is the theoretical value that reporting to the government prevents bad behavior on the part of employers.

This is one of those theories that I believe has aged past it’s useful life.  Bad behavior may not really exist anymore except in a small portion of the economy or in select geographies.  Let’s look at benefits.  Long ago, unions negotiated for better wages and benefits for its members.  At some point, employers realized that it was in their best interest to offer competitive pay and rewards to attract the best talent and engage their employees.  Now, if anything, unions simply represent an economic inhibitor in many of the places they exist.  ((Think about how unions make the U.S. automotive industry les competitive.  Alternatively, there is an argument that farmworkers still benefit from unions))  The same goes for compliance reporting.  Most employers today with a large enough workforce realize that getting the best talent out there regardless of any “class” restrictions makes good sense. Today’s employers will generally seek out the best talent regardless of race, sex, religion, etc…

I’ll admit that I did prove my point that compliance reporting has its place.  There are small employers and some geographies that indeed to need regulation for discrimination.  However, or the larger employers, limiting talent pools is not in their best interest.  These reporting structures only cost them money and valuable resources collecting the data.