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HR touches everything鈥攈iring, firing, pay, grievances, culture, compliance. HR can make or break a workplace. But here鈥檚 the wild part: HR isn鈥檛 regulated. At all.

That鈥檚 right. Anyone can call themselves an HR professional鈥攏o qualifications required, no legal standards to meet. You wouldn鈥檛 let just anyone handle your company finances or draft legal contracts, so why do we treat HR differently?

The question is: should we start regulating HR like law and finance? Or would that just bury businesses in more red tape?

Let鈥檚 get into it.

The Case for HR Regulation
Because HR Can鈥檛 Just Be Anyone鈥檚 Side Hustle
Imagine this: You鈥檝e just been unfairly dismissed. You go to HR, expecting them to know employment law, your rights, and how to handle it.

But what if they don鈥檛?

What if they were promoted into HR because they were 鈥済ood with people鈥� but have zero legal knowledge?

Would you still trust them with your job? Your livelihood?

Right now, HR is one of the only business-critical functions with no mandatory qualification requirements. If an accountant messes up, they can be struck off. If a lawyer gives bad advice, they can lose their license. In HR? The worst-case scenario is鈥� they update their LinkedIn and get another job.

In Canada, some provinces legally regulate HR, meaning only qualified professionals can handle serious HR functions like grievances, dismissals, and compliance. Maybe it鈥檚 time we took HR that seriously in the UK.

Shouldn鈥檛 we expect the same level of expertise in HR as we do in finance or law?

Protecting Employees from 鈥楤ad HR鈥�
HR should be there to ensure fairness at work. But let鈥檚 be honest鈥擧R doesn鈥檛 always get it right.

Ever seen a grievance swept under the rug because it was 鈥渆asier鈥�?

Watched HR side with management in a dispute instead of being neutral?

Felt like HR鈥檚 role is to protect the company, not the employees?

It happens all the time. And because HR isn鈥檛 regulated, there鈥檚 no real accountability.

A regulated HR profession, with a proper code of ethics, could change that. If HR professionals had to answer to an external body, they鈥檇 be forced to uphold higher standards鈥攏ot just do what鈥檚 convenient for the business.

Would employees trust HR more if it had real legal standards to follow?

Giving HR the Strategic Clout It Deserves
HR isn鈥檛 just admin鈥攊t鈥檚 workforce strategy, business growth, and culture. But because there are no legal requirements to work in HR, some businesses still don鈥檛 take it seriously.

If HR were legally recognised as a profession, it could:

鉁� Command more respect at board level

鉁� Have a stronger say in business strategy

鉁� Be treated with the same credibility as finance and legal teams

Would regulation finally make businesses take HR seriously?

The Case Against HR Regulation
More Red Tape? No Thanks.
HR already has to deal with endless employment laws, ACAS guidelines, and compliance frameworks. Do we really need to add a legal licensing system on top of that?

For big corporates, maybe it鈥檚 manageable. But for SMEs, an HR licensing requirement could be a disaster. Smaller businesses might:

Be forced to outsource HR, losing that personal touch
Struggle to afford qualified professionals, leading to inexperienced managers making HR decisions
Avoid HR altogether (which is just a lawsuit waiting to happen)
If the goal is to make HR more effective, how does pricing out smaller businesses help?

Would HR regulation actually hurt small businesses more than it helps employees?

Would HR Just Become 鈥楲egal Lite鈥�?
HR is about people鈥攏ot paperwork. But regulation could turn it into another slow, risk-averse, box-ticking department.

Instead of helping businesses build great workplaces, regulated HR professionals might:

鉁� Spend more time on paperwork than people

鉁� Be forced to follow rigid policies rather than practical solutions

鉁� Lose the flexibility to tailor HR strategies to different industries and businesses

HR should be people-first, not a robotic compliance machine. Do we really want HR to be all law and no leadership?

Would regulation kill the flexibility that makes HR so valuable?

HR Is Too Broad to Regulate Properly
Unlike medicine or law, HR isn鈥檛 a single profession鈥攊t covers everything from recruitment to payroll, mental health, diversity, leadership training, and employment law.

So, who exactly would be regulated?

Just HR Directors?

Anyone working in HR?

Managers who do HR tasks?

Even in Canada鈥檚 regulated system, businesses can still perform HR functions without a certified HR professional, as long as they don鈥檛 use protected job titles.

So, what鈥檚 the point? Would HR regulation in the UK actually change anything鈥攐r just add more loopholes to jump through?

Can HR even be regulated when it covers so many different roles?

What鈥檚 the Middle Ground?
Rather than full legal regulation, maybe it鈥檚 time for stronger self-regulation:

Possible solutions include:

鉁� Making CIPD accreditation the industry gold standard 鈥� More employers should require CIPD certification for senior HR roles, without making it law.

鉁� Creating an HR Charter 鈥� A government-backed accreditation that recognises ethical and competent HR professionals, without forcing businesses into rigid hiring rules.

鉁� Tougher employment law enforcement 鈥� If we want better HR, why not hold businesses more accountable for workplace violations rather than just policing HR professionals?

A system like this could raise HR standards without strangling businesses with red tape.

Final Thought: Does HR Need Regulation?
HR deserves more recognition, and bad HR decisions can ruin lives. But does regulation fix that, or just create a bigger headache?

One thing鈥檚 for sure鈥攖his conversation isn鈥檛 going anywhere.

What do YOU think?

Should HR be licensed like law and finance? Or is self-regulation the better way forward?

So, What鈥檚 Next? Join the Debate.
So far, our LinkedIn debate has reached 3,000 votes, with HR professionals, business leaders, and employees weighing in from all sides. This is the second blog in our discussion series, and we鈥檙e just getting started.

We want to turn this into a national conversation鈥攂ringing this debate to conferences, roundtables, and panel discussions. Eventually, we want this to feed into a much larger research project on the future of HR in the UK.

How You Can Get Involved:
鉁� Follow the debate on LinkedIn:

Pamela Moffat: www.linkedin.com/in/pamelamoffathr
Marc O鈥橦agan: www.linkedin.co.uk/in/marcohagan
鉁� Join the conversation! Drop a comment below鈥攕hould HR be regulated, or is self-regulation the way forward? Tag #HRRegulationDebate in your posts to contribute to the discussion.

鉁� Event organisers鈥攚ant this as a panel discussion or conference talk? We鈥檇 love to take the lead. Email us at hello@p3od.co.uk.

The future of HR is shaping up right now鈥攚ill you be part of the conversation?