Today's post is from Brian Spencer. He is our intern this semester at ILSHRM as well as Rogers
We had a
fantastic group of HR folks travel down to the State Capitol Building this
year! This is the fourth year that we
have had our spring conference and capitol visit and the first year that it has
rained so I guess we should count our blessings. Everyone took the weather in stride. Some car pooled over the few blocks and some
of us walked with umbrellas as the rain started to lighten up; falling gently
but steadily down rather than sideways.
We met in the rotunda for a few group pictures before descending on our
individual local official’s offices.
Many of us even used the tunnel, connecting the Capitol building to the
Stratton building next door, for the very first time!
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| Those who visited the Illinois Statehouse as part of the Legislative Conference |
We had our
plan of attack ready before we left the conference. For those of us who knew our official’s names
we looked up their office numbers for those that did not we were able to look
up our district and get the information we needed. Then we had a quick debriefing on how to get
around the facilities and to best introduce ourselves. Then we set out wielding our fact sheets and
business cards in hopes of meeting with our elected officials. (Appointments are rather difficult to get
more than a few days in advance when the legislators are in session here in
Springfield. Their schedules are much
more flexible while at the local offices, but then you don’t have the
opportunity to see the legal process in action!) For some, it was our first time to see the
state legislature in session, since our fourth-grade field trip to the Capitol - or
ever. Others were able to help direct
traffic because of their familiarity with the facility. It was fascinating to sit in the gallery and
observe the bills being debated and voted upon.
I can’t promise that every bill is exciting as the scenes in the recent
movie Lincoln, but it is a tremendous
learning experience nonetheless.
I loved
hearing so many great stories coming from those that participated in the
experience. It is great to have so many
of us to share in the excitement of the day together. Overwhelmingly, the experiences were quite
positive in dealings with the staff as well as some who were able to meet with
their legislators that day! We hope to
be sharing some of those success stories in the weeks ahead. I expect that several of us will have the
opportunity to continue these new relationships in the local offices in the
months ahead. As those relationships
begin to flourish, we will have more capacity to help educate our legislators
in the world of HR and offer our unique perspectives into how potential
legislation can impact our businesses and our workforce. My hope is that by this time next year we
will have even more of us to help lead the way for the others who are joining
the wave of Advocacy for the first time.
If you have an interest in getting involved
with your local legislators click here and we will get
some basic information to you to help equip you to make an impact where you
live and work.
