When to Bring a Problem to HR (and When Not To)

Your company’s human resources (HR) department is often pitched as an employee advocate—the place where you take problems or concerns. But most employees know by now that HR—or, in some start-up environments, "the people team"—isn’t really intended to protect you, the human resource in question. Instead, HR works to protect the company’s interests more than anything. And the way job hunting has become a grueling gauntlet of ghost jobs, endless interviews, and zero responses from HR representatives hasn’t exactly endeared HR to workers. In fact, research shows that more than 70% of employees don’t trust their HR department.

While it’s true that HR departments work for and protect the company, not you, that doesn’t mean they’re useless. First and foremost, the people who make careers in human resources want to do a good job, and often get into the field from a desire to help their coworkers. And your HR department can actually get a lot done for you, and not trusting them doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t utilize them when it makes sense. The trick is knowing when your company’s interests coincide with your own, making it not just safe to work with HR, but advantageous.

When to go to HR

There are several scenarios when human resources is your best bet to resolve a situation:

• Paperwork. The most obvious time it’s OK to knock on HR’s door is when you’re dealing with the mechanics of being employed—changing tax forms, signing up for optional benefits, taking advantage of career development programs, having programs and benefits explained, etc. That’s one huge part of what HR does, and it’s very unlikely that these kinds of innocuous interactions will have any kind of negative blowback—and you probably don’t have any other option, anyway.

  You’ll also need to go to HR for certain government programs and protections, like signing up for the Family Medical Leave Act if you need to take a leave of absence for an emergency. In those cases you can rely on HR to do exactly what you expect them to do.

• Harassment, discrimination, or illegal activities. If you’re the victim of sexual harassment, believe you’ve been treated differently by your boss or co-workers because of your race or other personal aspect, or you’ve observed something illegal going on in your job, HR is an appropriate place to go—with the caveat that you should protect yourself first. That means document what’s going on before you head to HR, and consult with outside advisors—like an attorney, if you’re worried about your liability or legal responsibilities.

  HR departments are legally obligated to investigate accusations of sexual harassment and illegal conduct, so you can expect action when you bring these issues to them. Just keep in mind that their overall goal will be to limit the company’s liability and damage, not necessarily yours. In other words, they will take some sort of action, but it might not be as thorough as you hope and may not result in anything drastic.

• Morale. One crucial way the company’s interests and your interests align is with office culture issues, including overall morale and the company’s ability to attract talent. If you have thoughts on how the office morale could be boosted, or ways that the company could attract better applicants, heading to HR to share them may bear fruit, and there’s likely little downside as long as your suggestions don’t include firing your boss.

Keep in mind that your experience dealing with HR will always be better if you come to them with a solution to your concerns in mind.

When not to go to HR

There are key scenarios when going to HR with your problems or concerns can blow back on you in a very negative way:

• Confidential issues. If you want something to remain confidential, think twice about going to HR, even if it involves coworkers or your manager. Human resources may have a legal obligation to act on what you tell them—if you’re being harassed, for example—but they also have no legal obligation to keep your secrets.

  If you think bringing a private issue to HR is your best way forward, you should work out the terms of confidentiality with the department ahead of time, if you can—don’t assume that they will keep something private just because you ask.

• Personality conflicts. Just not getting along with someone you work with? Best to work it out yourself or go through your boss. HR may offer some advice on resolving the situation, but they probably won’t escalate your complaints or take any action for purely personality-based problems. Most likely they will bring your manager into the conversation, and they might be annoyed that you didn’t bring it to them in the first place.

• A bad boss. On the one hand, yes, if your boss is abusive or crossing legal lines when it comes to you and your career, you may have to go to HR and file a complaint. But be very careful: HR’s goal will be to resolve the situation with as little threat to the company as possible, which may or may not line up with protecting you in any way.

  If your problem with your boss is a personal one, HR will likely advise you to work it out on your own, and they may or may not offer guidance or assistance. And if the manager is very high-level (and you’re not), your chances of HR taking your side are much lower.

• When it involves your career. If you’re looking to change jobs, don’t tell HR. You might be tempted to get information about rolling over retirement accounts, or about the specific titles you’ve had at the company. But there’s nothing stopping HR from informing your boss that you’re seeking an exit ramp from your job, and that might lead to your boss arranging one for you before you’re ready to make the leap (after all, you probably work at an “at-will” employer).