Legislative Action Roadshow

The vision of the Society for Human Resource Management Texas State Council (SHRM-TSC) is to be the voice of the HR professional throughout Texas in matters relating to business, legislative issues and professional development. Both the national organization and the SHRM-TSC work to provide information to our members about important legislative issues that impact our profession and educate lawmakers about the impact of the legislation they propose on employees and businesses. We go a step further, though, by helping to educate our members about how they can get involved as well.

Most lawmakers know very little about what a typical HR professional deals with on a day-to-day basis. Only two of the current 535 members of Congress have an HR background, and the numbers are similar at the state level. They simply don't have the experience to know that a bill that may sound like a good idea on the surface can have a lot of unintended negative consequences. SHRM members are the HR experts, and we need to speak up to help shape legislation before bad laws are passed.

Another important reason for our members to become involved is that lawmakers want to hear from their constituents—the people who can vote for or against them—much more than they want to hear from lobbyists. Legislators work for their constituents, and they want and need to hear real life stories about why a proposed bill may or may not work. In short, lawmakers are most influenced by interaction with and information from constituents when making decisions.

For these reasons, the SHRM-TSC wants to help our members find their own voices so they can become more involved in legislative issues that impact the workplace. One of the services SHRM-TSC offers to our chapters is the Legislative Action Roadshow. This program provides step-by-step instructions that will take the mystery out of the legislative process and how we can impact it. The program begins with the most basic information, such as determining who your elected officials are, then it provides a look at the best resources for researching pending legislation and how to stay updated as pending bills move through the process. There are interactive sections where participants learn how to call, write or conduct a meeting with elected officials, as well as what to expect during a visit and how to follow up. The program is fun and informal, and it provides role playing exercises to help members become comfortable expressing their views on important issues. Each attendee will leave with a handbook of written instructions they can keep and use as they begin putting the lessons they learned into practice. The program is approved for certification credits.

A team of experienced volunteers conducts the Roadshow, and will share their own personal experiences to let members know how easy it is to get involved and make a difference. To learn more about bringing the Roadshow to your chapter, contact Dena Culpepper at denaculpepper@att.net or 214-354-8740.

Texas SHRM
P.O. Box 8058
Tyler, Texas 75711
www.texasshrm.org • info@texassshrm.org • 214-354-8740