Every few months, a familiar storyline resurfaces in parts of the conservative press: HR is to blame for “wokeness”, for hypersensitive employees, for the supposed decline of robust leadership. The latest example — an article in today’s Telegraph (28 May 2026) by Martin Vander Weyen claiming “The Age of HR has turned everyone into a snowflake” — follows the same pattern. HR is cast as the villain.

I’ve been noticing a pattern of polarisation in parts of the HR world lately — especially among newer practitioners and some of the louder voices online. There seems to be a growing instinct to frame HR as either an advocate for employees or an agent of the employer. As if we’re supposed to pick a side. As if supporting one inherently means betraying the other.

We talk a lot about the importance of employee voice, and rightly so. People want to feel heard, valued, and involved in shaping the work they do. At the same time, leaders are encouraged to be inclusive, collaborative, and consultative. On paper, it sounds like a complimentary situation. But in practice? It’s more complicated.

I’m getting really cheesed-off with much of the UK press framing diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA) through an unmistakably American lens. The language is imported wholesale — “affirmative action”, “quotas”, “positive discrimination”, “lowering the bar”. However; the UK doesn’t operate under anything resembling the US affirmative action model that the Trump Administration is railing against.