r/humanresources

On average how many hours per week do you expect a salaried exempt employee to work? Where I’ve worked for manufacturing and hospitality, it’s around 45.
Would you please share, along with location and industry.

Hi everyone, I studied a book bundle (Leadership & navigation, people, workplace, organization), practiced endless times on the tests, paid a ridiculous amount on an online course with a qualified instructor for 4 months. But I still failed my exam today even tho I followed procedures as you would in real-life & based on theories and cycles. I’m planning to take the test a second time on the second test window. Any tips, tricks, or resources that helped you to pass it? Help a sis out 🫩

Please note that I’m outside U.S so actually the regulations or federal laws aren’t included in our exam.

I've noticed that a lot of HR advice sounds very straightforward until you're the person who actually has to make the decision. Sometimes you have incomplete information. Sometimes two employees tell completely different versions of the same story. Sometimes every available option has downsides, and you're just trying to choose the least harmful one.
I'm curious about the lessons that only come from experience. Without sharing anything confidential, what's one decision you handled early in your HR career that you'd approach very differently today?
What changed your perspective?

So I’m about to start my first HR Coordinator role after previously working in investigations, recruitment, and HR assistance. I’m excited about the opportunity, but it’s definitely a different side of HR than what I’m used to.

My question is: what helped you the most when you were starting out? Is there anything you wish someone had told you early on? I’m really keen to learn and make the most of the opportunity, so I’d appreciate any tips or stories from your own experience. Thank you so much!

Wanted to get a gut check from other HR folks, because it feels like this has picked up noticeably over the past year

Same story every time: we make an offer, candidate accepts, sometimes even signs paperwork - and then just disappears before day one. No call, no text, nothing. It's happened three times in the last two months across different departments, and hiring managers are running out of patience. Honestly, so am I.

I get that the market's competitive and people are juggling multiple offers. But it's the total silence that gets me. We're holding the role open, turning away other candidates, prepping onboarding - and the person's already checked out without saying a word.

Questions for the group:

• Are you seeing more of this lately, or does it come in waves?
• Have you changed anything in the window between offer acceptance and start date to keep candidates engaged?
• How do you handle the conversation with a frustrated hiring manager when it happens?

We've started doing informal check-in calls between offer and start date, but it feels like a band-aid at best. Curious what's actually working for other teams.

Hi everyone, I’m looking for some insight on how HR and background check providers would handle a recent blemish on my DMV record against an electronics job.
I’m expecting a conditional offer for an Electronic Communication Technician position which requires ocasional driving.
The job posting does not state having a clean or satisfactory driving record requirement only a valid drivers C license, but does have some details that imply driving company vehicles such as “Performs field service maintenance on two-way radio…” “Safely operate Metro vehicles” and “Travel to offsite locations within a reasonable timeframe”

Here are the exact facts on my current DMV record:
Date of Violation: 06-11-2023
Date of Conviction: 10-23-2023
Charges: Reckless Driving (23103 VC, 23593A VC)
License Suspension: 11-01-2023
Reinstatement Date: 03-01-2024 (My license is currently active and fully reinstated)

How do you think they will proceed with me, it’s a government job and I’ve been an applicant since October of last year. I’ve invested almost 9 months and I just reached the qualified candidate pool (QCP) list. I’d really be bummed out to find out I fail the background check now that I’m so close to reaching my three year mark on my conviction date.

Genuinely curious how other HR pros are navigating this because it keeps coming up at our org and I feel like there's no clean answer.

We had a candidate accept a written offer, complete all preemployment paperwork, and then just disappear three days before their start date. No call, no email, nothing. We filled the role, moved on, and about four months later that same person applied again for a different position on the same team.

The hiring manager wants to give them a shot because their skills are a strong match. I flagged the previous behavior and now I'm stuck in the middle doing the awkward dance of balancing the manager relationship with protecting the team from a repeat situation.

Do you have a formal policy around this? Do you blacklist candidates who ghost postoffer, or do you leave room for context and extenuating circumstances? We currently don't have anything written that covers this specific scenario and I'm starting to think we need to.

Also wondering if anyone has actually rehired a ghoster and had it work out, or if it almost always ends the same way. Would love to hear real experiences from people who have dealt with this more than once.

Anyone else the primary person overseeing FMLA? I’ve been involved for 3 years but overseeing it by myself for about a year. It’s so mentally exhausting. Is it because I care too much, do I just suck at this part of HR or is it really an area that just gets you down?

Our organization has 600 employees. I have 40 people on FMLA with 35 of those being intermittent. Most are frequent users, some barely use the time.

Hi everyone,

I work in HR in California, handling ER matters directly as part of my role. I hold PHR-CA and SHRM-CP certifications.

I handle ER matters as part of my role and want to sharpen my skills — particularly around conducting workplace investigations and managing difficult ER conversations.

I've been looking at the eCornell Employee Relations and Investigations certificate (5 courses, ~3 months, $3,600) and had a few questions for anyone who's completed it:

1. Did the curriculum translate to your actual day-to-day work, or was it more theoretical?
2. Is the investigation framework they teach something you actually use on the job?
3. Given that I already hold PHR-CA and SHRM-CP, was there meaningful new content — or did it feel redundant?
4. Would you recommend it over a shorter option like MSU's Workplace Investigations certificate ($1,200, 2 days)?

Any honest feedback appreciated — especially from those who were already certified before taking it. TIA!

Hello! I have been in HR for about 4 years. I originally got my undergrad in Political Science and quickly decided I didn't like that and knew I needed a job. I ended up in an HR department of 2 that was extremely disorganized, and the HR Director wanted to focus only on the law firm's operations. I was hired as an HR Assistant/Office Manager. This position opened my eyes to HR, and I decided to pursue an HR Master's degree. I recently completed this in December 2025.

While working on my master's, the law firm was extremely toxic, so I left for an HR Coordinator role where I mainly focused on onboarding. The drive was extremely far, and I felt I wanted more responsibility. I was there for about a year and a half. I then put my resume out for an HR Generalist role. I am currently here and have also been here for about a year and a half. Our organization recently underwent a reorganization and a 50% HR downsizing. Our organization employs upward of 8k employees. Recently, they also cut our 401(k) match in half and eliminated some of our benefits.

Since then, I have been keeping an eye out for openings across my city just to throw my resume out there. I am generally very happy with my team and my role. But I did not get a raise for my master's or certification. I am currently interviewing for a specialist role with an increase of about $20k. I am very interested in this position because it aligns with where I want to grow my career in HR. The company also offers greater upward growth and more opportunities.

My question is this: we all know company loyalty is few and far between these days, and the best way to increase salary is by getting a better offer. I am concerned that I have jumped from HR Assistant (2 years) to HR Coordinator (1.5 years) to HR Generalist (1.5 years). I planned to stay at my current company for the long haul, but there are concerns about its long-term stability. HR professionals who have been in the career longer, how do you feel about this? Should I be concerned about staying with a company long-term? Please be kind while giving advice and I would love to hear from you!

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I was laid off along with a few coworkers. Not surprised as we were told we there would be lay offs. However, of those 4 laid off, 3 of us had been on FMLA and had only returned within 1 or 2 months.

Obviously they said it was due to financial hardship but I just can’t shake the feeling that it’s not a coincidence. When I inquired they said the elimination of our positions would cause the least harm to the company.

I am beyond annoyed as I had been working there for more than 3 years, and was recently told my position would be changed to a HR coordinator from HR assistant since I was doing more than my assigned duties for a long time.

Any advice ?

I’ve been keen to pushback on the usage of AI as much as I can (purely because I don’t like feeding the AI machine), but unfortunately I did find it helpful in my work this week.

We use SAP SuccessFactors (and R/3) and I specifically focus on the HR Forms within the system. I have this one form that was designed to support our Compliance team for Reduction in Force notifications and the logic within it is dense, so I took the specification document, plugged it into CoPilot (company approved AI tool) and gave it the prompt:

“Based off the technical requirements in the attached spec doc, create a comprehensive list of testing scenarios”

Very rudimentary use of AI, but it did give me (someone who is ~1 year into my role with the company) a good starting point to identify all of my possible breakpoints within the form. It encouraged me to keep a list of prompts I can task CoPilot with if I ever get stuck looking at technical documents that my brain simply can’t dedicate the energy to deciphering at 4:30PM on any given day of the week.

Curious to hear what other prompts you all are using to support HRIS maintenance or configuration.

I have about 7 years of HR experience (mainly in HR generalist and HR operations). 

Most of my reporting work currently uses excel (vlookup and pivot table), so I’m looking to upgrade my data and reporting skills as I explore more analytical HR areas, especially Compensation & Benefits.

I'm currently considering courses such as:

-Power Query

-Power BI

-IHRP certification

Would appreciate advice on:

-What skills matter most in C&B day-to-day

-Whether tools like Power BI are commonly used in C&B roles

-Any courses or certifications that are actually useful for moving into this area

-Any experiences from those who have transitioned from HR generalist/HR operations into Compensation & Benefits

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone, using a throwaway account for obvious reasons. I really need to vent and get some objective perspective from fellow HR professionals.

​For context, I spent nearly 5 years at my previous company, moving up the ranks internally until I became a Team Lead. The environment wasn’t perfect—especially my relationship with my upper manager, which had become deeply toxic and full of mutual resentment—so I started looking elsewhere.

​I eventually accepted a massive career step up: an HR Director position for the national branch of a multinational corporation. The title, compensation, and benefits package were incredible, and it felt like the perfect escape and career progression.

​The first month or two felt like a honeymoon phase. But once the onboarding dust settled, the grim reality hit me: the company is essentially on the brink of shutting down this entire national branch. I later discovered that their revenue has been heavily in the negative for the past 5 years—a massive financial red flag that was completely hidden from me during the interview process.

​Budgets and funds for any kind of development or investment are completely frozen. The organizational structure is nonexistent, and compliance is an absolute nightmare. To make matters worse, the financial situation is so dire that every single month we honestly don't know if we will be able to process and pay employee salaries.

​On top of that, because the structure is crumbling, I’ve been buried under responsibilities that have absolutely nothing to do with HR, such as facility management, fleet management, and HSE.

​What hurts the most is that my true passion in HR has always been improving the workplace and the employee experience. Deep down, I have a bit of a people-pleaser personality, and I thrive when I can support and elevate people. Instead, my actual role here is to act as an executioner. My sole purpose right now is to figure out how to keep the lights on with zero budget, cut costs aggressively, and manage terminations until we are reduced to a skeleton crew.

​I’ve been here for about six months now, and I am already desperate to leave. However, I am terrified of how such a short stint on my resume will look to recruiters for similar management roles.

​I’m stuck in my own head spinning with self-doubt: Did I make a massive mistake and step into a role I wasn't actually ready for? Or did I just have the worst luck imaginable and walk straight into a sinking ship?

TL;Dr: Left a stable job after 5 years to escape a toxic boss and became an HR Director at a multinational. Turned out the company has been bleeding money for 5 years, is on the verge of shutting down, and we literally don't know if we can pay salaries month-to-month. Instead of doing actual HR, I’m stuck managing facilities, fleets, and laying off the entire staff with zero budget. I want out after 6 months but I'm terrified it will looks like the biggest red flag in my CV. Am I incompetent or just cursed?

​Thanks for reading and please send help

did one today. everything by the book, guy was even graceful about it. still cant stop thinking about it

We conduct weekly safety training with our team members. For second shift it is easy, we wait by the time clock and have them come talk to us after they clock in.

I am having difficulty when it comes to first shift. I do not have the same luxury of being here when they clock in. People are in a hurry to leave at the end of the day.

Currently, we walk out to the floor and pull people from their machines to talk to them. This is not effective. They are not listening because they are worried about their machines.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

1. Stopped defending policies I didn't believe in. "That's the policy" is not an answer, it's a surrender. If I can't explain why, I push to change it.
2. Stopped doing PIPs as termination paperwork. If the decision is already made, be honest. A PIP should be a rescue mission or it shouldn't exist.
3. Stopped hiring for "culture fit." Fit gets you ten copies of the same guy. I hire for culture add now.
4. Stopped treating exit interviews as the feedback source. By the time someone's leaving, it's archaeology. Stay interviews. Every quarter. Non-negotiable.
5. Stopped pretending I don't have favorites. Everyone does. The skill isn't not having them, it's making sure it never shows up in a decision.

Number 2 will get me flamed by half this sub. Bring it.