What if there was a National Human Resources? Employers would no longer be responsible for hiring or wage division.
Company A submits to the NHR what they're looking for in a candidate. Here's the thing, whatever "qualities" they're looking for, someone was already trained to look for those. It's teachable. It's documentable. It can be quantified. Therefore, it can be outsourced to NHR.
Oh, Company A needs someone that can get along with their group? Well that means that the current HR person at Company A knows what it takes to get along. They know the person should enjoy basketball, should be able to discuss nail polish colors, should have a favorite cookie, etc. Anything that isn't prejudice is something that could be covered in a question. See how that works?
(And if you don't like the person that gets hired, you're gonna need to put your finger on why. Gotta make sure it isn't because they aren't <insert prejudice reason here> enough.)
Also, every position at every job will report the current pay. Company A pays X dollars for this job. The qualifications for a pay increase is Y. NHR will review if employees are eligible upon request once per quarter or year, depending on how often Company A gives raises. If no one "at the bottom" is qualifying for raises, that "bonus money" that top tier usually gets is being put into an employee training improvement program. The people at the top aren't doing a good enough job if the people at the bottom aren't rising.
Anyone unemployed will use NHR to get job offers. Matches in their area and matches with better pay in other areas will also be suggested.
Headhunters are all going to have to work with NHR.
Resumes will be complied in the NHR database. People won't make them anymore. Either you're qualified or you aren't. We won't be using names, addresses, phone numbers, or other such information. No, like social security, everyone gets an NHR number. This will help ensure jobs aren't given based on bias information.
You know who really will dislike this? Colleges and Universities. There goes the notion that a degree from a community college holds better job opportunities than one from Big State U.
This is just the base idea. Obviously, there needs to be computer algorithms and figure out how to hire people for NHR and how to get every company in America onboard.
Other jobs, too. Have you been hired to do politics? Your wage will be based on how often you do your job and how many of your constitutes agree you're doing it well. (People will be asked on a quarterly payday, and will not be paid unless they answer. Answering "no opinion" is allowed.)
Staying at home as a parent, house spouse, or caregiver will also now generate a minimum wage income. NHR will not consider parenting as being "out of the workforce," but rather as gaining experience in other areas. NHR is also going to destroy the discrimination against pregnancy. And while we're at it, maternity and paternity leave are going to exist, be for a real length like other industrialized nations, and are no longer going to hold someone back (or give someone else an advantage) in the job market. Babies will get to be as important as jobs! Population generation will get to matter. And those who don't raise a family will get to retire earlier or get equal time off after a certain age or something. Because that choice is also valid, but it won't be a competitive edge in the career world.
Plan to take your business overseas because you can't find workers here? Prove it to the NHR or face hefty fines. Intend to toss out a bunch of people just before they reach retirement or other benefits? Better be ready to justify that to the NHR, who will likely find the money by cutting the pay of the CFO. That's right -- no one gets laid off while top tier people make over six figures. Let me say that again -- NO ONE gets laid off while anyone at the same company makes more than $99,999 a year (including money from stocks and bonds and stuff, because loopholes are getting tied shut). You want to know a big obstacle to the NHR? Rich people who don't want to pay people well.
I've been thinking about this idea for some time because of the wage gap. But what inspired me to write this today was this video:
So that's my idea. Please don't comment with why it won't work. Be useful, comment with how it COULD work, how you'd fix whatever reason it doesn't work.
It's time to start fixing things. Equal pay for equal work. Hiring based on real qualifications. Raises based on effort. Accountability for vastly overpaid top-level people.
Anyway, this is just a blog post. It's just an idea. Unless someone with authority makes it happen, it's little more than fiction. A plot bunny for a better America.
