S I X T H A N N UA L

Employee Relations
Benchmark Study
Table of Contents

1 A Message from the CEO 3

2 Methodology and Terminology 5

3 Key Findings 6

4 Organizational Resources 10

5 Managing Cases 16

6 Issue Trends 25

7 Metrics and Analytics 30

8 About the Study 35

©May 2022. All rights reserved. Data and images may only be reproduced with attribution to HR Acuity.

2 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

A Message from the CEO
The results of our Sixth Annual Employee Relations Benchmark Study don’t ER organization needs to have the basics running like a well-oiled machine.
shock me as much as they strengthen my resolve to continue growing our People leaders need to be consistently trained. Escalations need to feel safe.
community’s relevance and capabilities. This data by itself doesn’t reveal Investigation processes need to be tight and transparent.
dramatic spikes and unforeseen trends (that was so 2020). Instead, it feels Documentation needs to be even tighter. Without the basics working
like a distress signal coming from the community I love. While there are a few on autopilot, there is no time left for training waves of new people leaders,
encouraging upticks in the findings, I’m compelled to shout a wake-up call to identifying potential hotspots, and proactively mitigating harmful trends.
our ER community: this is the precise moment when our role is more important Certainly, there is no time left for gathering and analyzing feedback that can
than it has ever been, and we are missing the mark. We can do better. elevate our function and improve our impact.
Looking at this year’s data my heartbeat sank with every flatline.
Employees expect us to lead now.
The 2020 decline in the use of required investigation processes, the low
The parallel pandemic and social justice movements of 2020 upended the
frequency of investigation training and decline in sharing outcomes was
status quo and laid the groundwork for even higher employee expectations.
disheartening enough.
Unsurprisingly, our community needed some time to pivot, prioritize and
To see no bounce back felt bleak. After all, these practices are how we
process. Fast forward to 2022 and employees are done giving us a grace
put action behind our values, and for employees our actions speak louder
period. They expect more of our organizations and leaders right now—and
than words.
they aren’t waiting around for us to catch up—queue “The Great Resignation.”
Employees expect our support when moments that matter go wrong. The You are the community that can raise the bar.
processes we follow and the tools we give our people leaders to handle each As always, I’m humbled by the community we have gathered. Every year you
moment either build or break trust. Employees want to work in organizations shoot straight and help us collect the data we need to report back with an
they trust. If we aren’t building it, they won’t stay. Indeed, they are flocking to honest state of employee relations—even when that state needs work.
organizations that put values such as transparency, fairness and inclusion into Thank you for your continued honesty, collaboration and commitment to the
action. They are watching how investigations are run. They are noticing whether truth. I love that you don’t sugar coat it, and that’s why we can use this setback
the outcomes are fair and equitable. They are talking about how their manager as a setup to raise the bar. No one cares more about the employee experience
handled a bad situation. They are telling their friends and co-workers ‘what than the people in employee relations—it’s why we’re here, right?
happens behind closed doors.’ I want to hear from you. I invite you to explore the data, let me know what you
see and let’s talk about how we can help each other move forward from here.
The groundswell around ER will not slow down.
Higher expectations for Employee Relations are a natural reaction to our
accelerated pace of change. Look how quickly we went from COVID-19 panic,
Deborah J. Muller
to BLM protests, to amending the Federal Arbitration Act. To keep pace, every CEO, HR Acuity® | 888.598.0161 | [email protected]

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 3

 RESPONDENT PROFILE

This year’s Benchmark Study participants included CHROs, Heads

The findings include input from 155
of HR, Vice Presidents, Global and Regional Employee Relations
organizations, representing approximately
Leaders, Senior Directors, Directors, Senior Managers and HRBPs,
5.3 million employees globally.
with 67% of respondents at the director level or higher and one
submission per organization.

By Size By Industry By Revenue By Fortune Lists

72%

21%
8%
16% 32%
25% 38% 45%
21%
22% 15%
14%
8%
33% 8% 15% 27%
14%
12%

1,000-3,499 Financial Services/Insurance $100 million or less Fortune Fortune Fortune Global
3,500-9,999 Technology $101-999 million 100 500 1000 500
10,000-19,999 Healthcare/Hospitals $1-$5 billion
20,000+ Pharma/Medical Devices $5.1-$10 billion
Retail/Wholesale More than $10 billion
Other

4 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

Methodology & Terminology
HR Acuity, in partnership with Isurus Market Research, fielded an online survey via email and social media Acronyms Used
targeted at employee relations professionals at enterprise organizations based in the United States with Throughout
at least 1,000 employees. Participants included employee relations leaders from 155 organizations, the Study
representing 5.3 million employees globally. The data collected was from the calendar year 2021.

The research was conducted between February 15 and March 23, 2022, and has a confidence level CHRO
of +/- 8.2 percentage points. The report highlights yearly changes only when statistically significant. Chief Human Resources Officer

COE
Center of Expertise
Terms Used Employee Relations
EEOC
Throughout the Study Organizational Models Equal Employment
Centralized Opportunity Commission
Employee Relations Professionals
Individuals who are dedicated to managing or Centralized team of Employee Relations Professionals or ER
working on employee relations matters Center of Expertise (“COE”) responsible for managing Employee Relations
employee relations issues and conducting investigations
HR Business Partners or Generalists ERP
across the organization (Note this group does not have to be
Individuals who provide strategic or Employee Relations Professional
geographically centralized.)
operational human resources support to FTE
business or functional areas Mixed Full-Time Equivalents
Centralized team for managing some or most of the employee
HR
relations cases and investigations but field resources (HR
Human Resources
Business Partners/Generalists and/or managers) still manage
some employee relations issues HRBP/G
Human Resource Business
Decentralized Partner/Generalist
Employee relations issues are managed within the specific
HRIS
lines of business by HR Business Partners/Generalists or
Human Resource
Employee Relations Professionals. Employee Relations Information System
matters are not centralized

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 5

Key Findings
As the pandemic continued to dominate headlines and disrupt life in Several previous employee relations
2021, the impact on organizations and their employees persisted. The trends have been embraced as
Great Resignation took hold, and policy violations and unprofessional
standard practices.
conduct increased, while employers and workers continually recalibrated
expectations and priorities based on the dynamic public health situation.
Defining employee relations: ER professionals typically handle a wide
During this time a paradigm shift has occurred, blurring the lines between
range of employee issues, from time and attendance, performance
the outside world and the inside workplace. Another unpredicted outcome,
concerns and policy violations to allegations of harassment,
this new environment will no doubt continue to change the employee
discrimination and retaliation. Over the past few years, the scope of
relations landscape in many ways. Organizations are recognizing the need
employee relations has continued to expand and now routinely includes
to evolve and create more diverse, equitable and inclusive work cultures.
ER analytics (85%), proactive ER training (77%), policy development
This year’s Benchmark Study findings echo this ongoing interruption. (68%), policy oversight (67%) and required employee training (66%).  
Several of the trends in the 2021 data mirror 2020’s results. The results Centralization continues to be the dominant model: Centralization has
raise a big picture question: Are employee relations (ER) practitioners and been a best practice organization model for employee relations since
their organizations still experiencing the lingering effects of the pandemic, 2016 with the vast majority of respondents (88%) using a centralized
or have they settled into a new post-pandemic normal?   or mixed model.
Among the consistencies in these findings, many practices, such as
using a centralized model and tracking employee data, have become Technology in Employee Relations maintains a stronghold: Seventy-two
commonplace. Conversely, structured investigation processes, training percent (72%) of respondents use some sort of employee relations and
frequency and sharing of employee relations outcomes continue to lag investigation technology platform for tracking employee relations data.
which is counter to building trust with employees.
Data drives decision-making: Nearly all (92%) of employee relations teams
The transformation seen in employee relations that helped to elevate the that rely on metrics track an average of nine (9) different ER metrics for
function and position ER as a strategic partner in driving business decisions insights. Two-thirds (67%) of ER teams continue to share metrics directly
is in jeopardy. There is still a high degree of variability in how the function with senior leadership indicating the importance of this data in shaping
is viewed and structured, as well as a need for greater consistency. We will business decisions.
have to wait until next year to see whether employee relations processes
and practices have in fact stabilized or if, as the acuteness of the pandemic
continues to fade, organizations will return their focus to ER activities and
invest more time and resources in the function. The key findings from the
research are below.

6 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

Key Findings
While the COVID-19 pandemic Momentum has stalled from pre-pandemic levels
continues to exert its influence regarding staffing resources and commitments
everywhere, the impact of vital to improving employee relations processes.
social and political activism on
employee relations caseloads Only 43% of organizations indicated they follow a required process for
significantly declined in 2021. investigations. The absence of a structured investigation process can have
far-reaching implications for organizations because thorough and consistent
investigations are central to building trust with employees.
The majority of participants attributed increases in
case volumes in 2021 to COVID-19 (85%). Two-thirds of organizations (65%) are not training their investigators or do
so only as-needed. This is troubling, as the work environment has changed
About one-half of respondents reported that the
significantly in the past few years. Investigators must adapt their skills to ensure
political landscape (49%) and social movements
they are conducting best-practice investigations in this new environment to
like Black Lives Matter (48%) caused increased
help minimize risk to their organizations and brands.
caseloads, a significant decrease from 2020
data. In 2021, social movements contributed to Fewer than 1 in 5 organizations (17%) share aggregated, anonymous investigation
caseloads at the same rate as other issues such as or employee relations data with employees. Of those that do, only half share it
organizational change and The Great Resignation. once a year. This is concerning, as transparency drives accountability and shows
that employee issues and allegations will be taken seriously.  
The increasing importance of Environmental, Social,
& Governance (ESG) departments can be seen in Employee Relations resources remained flat in 2021 and most organizations
increased business expectations (36%), which in (59%) expect them to remain flat in 2022. As organizations concentrate on
turn drives caseloads. efforts to retain talent, as the pandemic recedes, they may realize that ER
professionals are essential to this effort and recommit to adding resources and
61% of respondents reported an increase in the
enhancing the ER function.  
number of accommodation requests (up 12 points
over 2020), likely due to COVID-19 vaccine-related Only half of organizations (47%) use a case management solution to store
requests. documentation related to employee relations and investigations, consistent
with the past few years. This means that many organizations continue to
store this documentation using methods that can increase litigation risks,
compromise consistency and security and provide little opportunity for
reporting insights.

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 7

OVERALL PERFORMANCE

To assess how ER professionals feel they are handling different aspects of the Employee Relations function, we asked participants to
rate the activities and abilities of the ER team, people leaders and the organization regarding employee matters.

Few ER professionals saw room for improvement in how they conduct investigations. ER professionals tend to control these activities
and view them as core competencies. A small but meaningful number of respondents admitted that their organization needs to
improve the consistency and effectiveness of their ER processes and systems. Most ER professionals felt their people leaders fall
short in handling employee concerns and issues effectively.

Overall, how would you rate your current organization’s ER processes and activities in the following areas?

Organizations that rated performance as good/excellent

88%

81%

74%
Conducting Thorough Investigations
40%
Applied Consistency of Steps and Processes

Overall Effectiveness of Your Employee

Relations Processes and Systems

Overall Capability of People Leaders to Handle

Employee Issues and Concerns Effectively

8 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

OVERALL PERFORMANCE (continued)

The data shows that using a centralized model or ER technology improves an organization’s ability to conduct thorough investigations and
apply consistency across all the steps in the process. These approaches result in an overall higher level of effectiveness and productivity.
Organizational model did not influence ER professionals’ opinions of their people leaders’ capabilities. Those who use ER technology gave
somewhat more credit to their people leaders—likely because those leaders have invested in ER solutions.

ORGANIZATIONAL MODEL ER TECHNOLOGY USE

Overall Performance Measure Centralized Decentralized Use ER Tech Do Not Use ER Tech

Conducting thorough investigations 92% 72% 93% 85%

Applied consistency of steps and processes 89% 50% 87% 76%

Overall effectiveness of your employee

84% 44% 83% 67%
relations processes and systems

Overall capability of people leaders to handle

42% 44% 48% 33%
employee issues and concerns effectively

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 9

Organizational Resources
ORGANIZATIONAL MODEL
As in each of the past six years, centralization prevailed as the preferred approach and recommended model to organize
and manage employee relations. A mixed model (which includes a Center of Expertise (COE) or Shared Services) has also
held steady for one-third of organizations. A minority of organizations still use a decentralized model. Of these, one-third
are considering a move to a centralized model.

Current Employee Relations Model

67%
62%
60% 57% 56% 55%

37% 37%
32% 34%
27%
20%

13% 12%
12% 6% 6% 7%

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

Centralized
Mixed
28%
of decentralized
Decentralized
organizations are
considering a change
in the future

10 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

REPORTING STRUCTURE

The results showed that employee relations teams are reporting to the Vice President of Human Resources and to the Chief
Human Resources Officer (CHRO) or Head of Human Resources at equal rates. While the number of teams reporting to the
CHRO bounced back in 2021 after a significant drop in 2020, the number reporting to the CHRO is still 10 points below 2019.

This may signal that employee relations is maturing as an HR function. The data suggests that the elevation of employee relations
in recent years and the increasing importance of employee relations data and insights have leveled off. As organizations develop
more processes and procedures, employee relations activity may be managed effectively at the VP level, allowing the CHRO to
turn their attention to other strategic issues.

In the U.S., to whom does the Employee Relations team report?

All respondents reporting to

1% Shared Services (7%) and to
5% 3% Legal (3%) were from large
7% enterprise organizations with
+9 points more than 10,000 employees
but still
well below
2019 43%

42%

VP HR (Director Level)
CHRO / Head of HR
Shared Services
Other
Legal
Compliance

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 11

STAFFING RESOURCES

One of the constant challenges ER leaders face is determining the appropriate number of Employee Relations professionals (ERPs) needed to
handle employee issues effectively and efficiently. To help organizations benchmark resources based on organizational size, we normalize
the data and use the median number of resources per 1,000 employees.

Year over year, the data consistently illustrates economies of scale. Large organizations require fewer overall resources than smaller organizations.
The data also repeatedly confirms that organizations using a centralized or mixed model require far fewer HR Generalists/Business Partners.

Staffing ratios Employee HR Generalist/ In-House

by organizational Organizational Relations Business Lawyers
model Model Professionals Partners
(FTE per 1,000 CENTRALIZED 0.74 2.19 0.20
employees - median)
MIXED 0.50 2.74 0.20
DECENTRALIZED 0.23 4.81 0.23
ALL 0.67 2.65 0.20

Staffing ratios Number Employee HR Generalist/ In-House

by number of of Relations Business Lawyers
employees U.S. Employees Professionals Partners
(FTE per 1,000 1,000 - 3,499 1.00 4.00 0.39
employees - median)
3500 - 9,999 0.68 2.67 0.23
10,000 - 19,999 0.56 2.86 0.20
20,000+ 0.50 2.08 0.15
ALL 0.67 2.65 0.20

12 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

STAFFING RESOURCES (continued)

The 2021 results show that organizations

Staffing ratios over time (FTE per 1,000 employees - median)
using a centralized approach for
employee relations have twice as many ER HR Generalists
professionals. This reflects the level of priority ER Professionals
these organizations place on employee In-House Lawyers
relations relative to those that follow a
decentralized model. 2.6 2.7
2.5 2.5
Although there has been some variation over
the years, the ratios have held steady over
the past four years. As predicted in last year’s 0.9
0.7 0.6 0.7
report, most resources were flat in 2021 and
a majority of organizations expect staffing 0.4
0.2 0.2 0.2
to stay flat in 2022. It is possible that on the
backside of the pandemic, organizations will
2018 2019 2020 2021
restaff their HR departments. We will have
to watch to see if there is an uptick in ER
professionals in 2022.
2022 projections: Organizations expect resources to remain flat

ER Professionals 59%
2.7
2.5

HR Generalists 61%

0.6 0.7

In-House Lawyers 23%

0.2 0.2

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 13

SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITIES

Which of the following types of cases generally fall within

the scope of your employee relations team as a whole?

Non-Sexual Harassment Allegations 97%

Policy Violations 95%

Behavioral Issues 94%

Retaliation 92%

Sexual Harassment Allegations 91%

Discrimination 91%

Performance 81%

Time and Attendance 74%

Employee relations teams continue to handle a wide

Accommodations 62%
range of employee issues with little change from last
year’s report. Slightly more of the 2021 participants
Wage and Hours 61%
noted that they are responsible for non-sexual
harassment claims. Slightly fewer said they handled
Reduction in Force (RIF)/Severance 55% leave management. These two changes continue
trends that started in 2019.
Response to EEOC or Other Federal, 50%
State or Local Administrative Agency

Leave Management 34%

14 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

SCOPE OF RESPONSIBILITIES (continued)
What additional functions are managed by employee relations?

Employee Relations Analytics 85%

Proactive Employee Relations Training 77%

Policy Development or Benchmarking 68%

Policy Oversight/Governance 67%

Required Employee Relations Training 66%

(Around Harassment, Code of Conduct, etc.)

Exit Surveys 39%

Employee relations analytics,

Alternative Dispute Resolution 31% training, policy development and
governance continue to be core
responsibilities of the employee
Engagement Initiatives 29%
relations team. The increase in
responsibility for managing activities
Union Avoidance Activities 26% +10 from 2020 related to unions reported in 2021
was likely due to increasing interest
among employees in certain
Affirmative Action 20%
industries to organize. It will be
interesting to see how this trends in
Labor Negotiations 15% the future.

OSHA 11%

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 15

Managing Cases
CASE VOLUMES
Case volume data across the board was nearly identical to the findings in last year’s report. Most employee
relations professionals continue to handle six or more issues at any given time. The employee relations professionals
who handle all employee issues and conduct investigations experience the heaviest caseloads.

ER professionals at larger companies have heavier caseloads, most likely because these organizations have fewer
employee relations resources per 1,000 employees than smaller companies. 5 or fewer
6-10
The findings suggest that both technology and data analytics help practitioners effectively handle higher volumes
11-25
of cases, as caseloads are repeatedly higher at organizations that use an employee relations platform.
26-35
36 or more
Number of cases that ER professionals
handle at any one time
A Deeper Look at the Data*
31%
23%
By Number of Employees
9%
21%
11% 23% 38%
30% 26%
26% 10%
All ER Issues and 40% 17%
Conduct Investigations 22% 9%
9% 3% 19%
7% 9%
22% 1,000-3,499 Employees 3,500-10,000 Employees 10,000+ Employees
22%

31% 8%
12%
ER Issues but Do Not Impact of ER Technology
Conduct Investigations
35% 32%
20%
19% 21%
10%
25% 26% 5%
19%
42% 4% 12% 5%
6% Use ER Technology Do not use ER Technology
Only Conduct Investigations * This data is for ER professionals who handle all ER issues and conduct investigations.

16 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

CASE ASSIGNMENTS

The most common approach for assigning cases again in 2021 was by line of business.
This likely reflects the wide range of control that lines of business have over their operations.
This trend is steady regardless of the employee relations organizational model used.

Primary method for assigning cases on the employee relations team

35%

14% 14%
11%
9%
7%
1%

By Line of By By Case First In, By By Subject Auto-Assigned

Business Geography Type First Out Complexity Matter

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 17

 TIME TO CLOSE

Last year’s Study showed that cases in every category were open longer than prior to the pandemic. The 2021 data echoes those findings, with one
exception—slightly fewer time & attendance cases were resolved within a week. This is likely due to pandemic-related issues and ongoing remote work.

Length of time cases are typically open

Time & Attendance 34% -8 from 2020 29% 14% 7% 6% 11%

Policy Violations 18% 34% 30% 9% 5% 5%

Performance 14% 31% 23% 15% 13% 5%

Wage and Hours 13% 26% 31% 6% 7% 17%

Leave Management 13% 24% 28% 9% 15% 11%

Behavior Issues 9% 40% 28% 13% 5% 5%

Reduction in Force (RIF)/Severance* 9% 11% 33% 19% 16% 12%

Accommodations 8% 35% 32% 11% 8% 5%

Response to EEOC 6% 21% 27% 24% 13% 13%

Non-sexual Harassment Allegations 6% 26% 38% 17% 13% 5%

Sexual Harassment Allegations 3% 30% 34% 19% 13% 3%

Discrimination 3% 23% 43% 13% 15% 2

Retaliation 2 31% 37% 13% 12% 5%

Less than 1 week 1-2 weeks 3-4 weeks 5-8 weeks More than 8 weeks Not Applicable/Don’t know
* New case category added this year

18 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

INVESTIGATION PRACTICES

The steady and significant four-year upward trend in the use of required investigation processes was disrupted in 2020 and persisted in 2021. It is unclear
whether the spike in 2019 was an anomaly in the wake of #MeToo, or if the downturn and plateau were due to an ongoing shift in priorities related to
managing workforces during the pandemic. Either way, it signals concerns about the risk of process stagnation. Required investigation processes are
critical to conducting thorough investigations, which in turn, build trust with employees. Organizations will need to refocus on this important practice to
continue improving workplace culture.

Method that best describes how investigations

are conducted within organizations in the U.S.

Required, Structured Process,

43% Including Forms and Templates,
for Conducting Investigations Use of required processes for conducting investigations

59%

44% 43%
41%
Suggested Process/sample forms
and Templates for Conducting 33%
49%
Investigations, Not Required
23%

2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

No Specific Guidelines or
8% Processes for Conducting
Investigations

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 19

INVESTIGATION TRAINING
How often are investigators trained on proper investigation techniques?

Organizations continue to train investigators 9%

2021
less frequently than they did a few years ago.
2020 13%
Similar to the 2020 findings, only 28% of
organizations reported training investigators 2019 21%
once a year or more. Two-thirds of
organizations (65%) have no formal training for 19%
2021
investigators or provide investigation training
2020 16%
on an as-needed basis or less than every two
years. This is concerning, as the workplace has 2019 36%
changed dramatically in the past few years.
To keep pace, it’s important for investigators 2021 8%
to refresh their skills and adapt their approach
2020 4%
to the changing work environment to ensure
2019 7%
investigations are conducted in a thorough,
consistent and compliant manner.
2021 3%

2020 2%
More than once per year
Once a year 2019 2%
Once every two years
Less than every two years 2021 48%
As needed, not according to any formal schedule
2020 56%
No formal trainings are held
2019 28%

2021 14%
2020 10%
2019 6%

20 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS TRACKING

Does your organization use any sort of

employee relations and investigation
technology platform to track employee
relations issues and investigations?
How does your organization primarily track
employee relations issues and investigations?

46%
Yes
72%
39%

No 32%
28%
+9 from 2020
23%

18%

39%
are likely to transition
to an employee or
ER case management
system in the next Employee Hotline Spreadsheets/ Ticketing HRIS
12 months Relations (e.g., Generic System (e.g.,
Technology EthicsPoint, Database (e.g., ADP,
Platform Navex, Com- (e.g., Salesforce.com, Oracle,
(e.g., plianceLine, Excel, ServiceNow, UKG,
HR Acuity, etc.) Access, etc.) Workday,
I-Sight, SharePoint, etc.)
etc.) etc.)

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 21

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS TRACKING (continued)

What specific technology platform does your organization use for

managing employee relations and conducting investigations?*

74% HR Acuity

33% Navex/EthicsPoint

10% ServiceNow

7% i-Sight

6% managER by HR Acuity

4% SharePoint

AnswerKey, ComplianceLine,
1% each Convercent, Dovetail, Infor,
Salesforce, TIMS, ZenDesk

* No respondents indicated use of AllVoices, Compliance 360, Convergence, D3, LaborSoft, SAI Global, Sugar CRM

22 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

STORING DOCUMENTATION

The results for 2021 echo those of 2020 regarding how organizations are storing documentation related to employee issues
and investigations. While almost half said they use a case management system, one-third of organizations continue to
use multiple methods for storing employee relations and investigation documents. Half of the participants continue to use
approaches that prevent consistency, lack security, and limit reporting capabilities and visibility for data-driven insights.

How does your organization primarily store documentation created

as a result of an employee relations issue or investigation?

47%

32%

9% 9%

3%

Case Mixed/ HRBPs/ERPSs Uploaded/ Sent to/Filed

Management Combination Maintain Own Stored on a by Centralized
System of All Methods Documentation Shared Drive HR Team

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 23

 Ability to securely store all documents and Storage and historical tracking of data;
information related to a case in a centralized consistency and standardization of cases.
location. Records retention.
Single source of truth that helps drive Centralized system for all ER/INV cases;
appropriate investigative process. ability to use standardized templates across
Easy/quick access to metrics; ability to identify the organization, builds consistency and
employees who have either participated in compliance; minimizes legal risk; built-in
incidents or identify source of issues; provides analytics is also helpful.
a central location to review documentation Ability to report and track ER data.
and case outcomes across entire company.
Consistency in reports; access to
Uniform and accurate tracking of cases,
Describe the centralized database, metrics.
real-time data to include in charts.
Consistent case management and
biggest benefits Able to maintain historical record of all ability to report.
matters reported and audit complaints
of the platform as they come in.
Ease of use and robust reporting.

you use for Single repository of all ER issues for reporting;

Familiarity for users, and ability to customize
system to fit our needs;
ability to share data;
employee relations reporting capabilities.
the technology continues to improve.

management. Great features and tools to ensure that cases

Centralized and standardized platform to
document, report and track ER issues.
are well-documented and offers support for
newer investigators. Ability to report, set up customized features
and track data.
Centralization and consistency of records,
integration with workforce management Case volume transparency.
system and easy analysis of volumes and
trends.

Having an official system of record for cases is the biggest

benefit, but others include efficiency of process, Board/enterprise
reporting, ease of identifying trends and training opportunities.

24 SIXTH
SIXTH ANNUAL
ANNUAL EMPLOYEE
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
RELATIONS BENCHMARK
BENCHMARK STUDY
STUDY
 Issue Trends
ISSUE VOLUME Significant decrease
One-third of organizations cited the most significant increases in accommodation requests, again in 2021. One-half of organizations Some decrease
saw an increase in violations of workplace COVID-19 policies, a metric added in this year’s study. An increase in unprofessional The same
conduct and policy violations was also reported by half of organizations. Perhaps some of these increases are aligned with COVID-19 Don’t know
policies. Social media issues, retaliation and job performance also continue to be challenges for many companies. Some increase
Significant increase
Case volume by issue type

Accommodation Requests 1 7% 16% 15% 28% 33%

Violations of Workplace COVID-19 Policies* 12% 23% 12% 38% 14%

Unprofessional Conduct/Policy Violations 8% 34% 9% 36% 12%

Discrimination 2 5% 50% 7% 27% 10%

Social Media Issues 6% 5% 48% 8% 25% 7%

Retaliation 3% 8% 53% 8% 22% 6%

Job Performance 3% 9% 37% 8% 38% 5%

Sexual Harassment Allegations 3% 14% 52% 7% 19% 5%

Non-sexual Harassment Allegations 3% 9% 49% 6% 28% 5%

Substance Abuse 14% 43% 21% 19% 4%

Workplace Violence 6% 12% 50% 16% 11% 4%

Abuse of Remote Communication Platforms 3% 5% 47% 23% 19% 4%

Theft/Fraud 4% 10% 52% 22% 8% 3%

Workplace Bullying 2 10% 47% 9% 29% 3%

Charges by EEOC 1 10% 39% 29% 15% 3%

Wage and Hour Disputes 4% 10% 48% 21% 12% 1

Union Organizing 2 44% 40% 9% 1

* New issue category added this year

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 25

ISSUE VOLUME (continued)
To what would you attribute the increase in employee-related events/issues over the course of 2021?

COVID-19 Related Changes 85%

The Political Environment 49% -24 from 2020

Social Movements
48% -29 from 2020
(e.g., #MeToo or Black Lives Matter, etc.)

Organizational Changes 47% The majority of respondents attributed

increases in case volumes throughout
2021 to COVID-19 related changes.
The Great Resignation 42% No other single factor stood out as the
primary driver of caseload increases but,
Increased Awareness of Perceived Rights 41% for most organizations many factors were
at work. While the influence of the political
environment and social movements on
Increased Business Expectations 36% +11
+11 from 2020 employee relations caseloads dropped
significantly, the increasing importance of

Increased Activism in the Workplace ESG (Environmental, Social, & Governance)

36%
departments can be seen by increased
business expectations and awareness of
The Economy business regulations, which in turn drive
28%
caseloads. This seems to indicate that the
social events of the past few years have
Broader Use or Availability of Technology
20% become absorbed by corporate cultures in
efforts to address diversity and equitability.

Increased Awareness of Regulations 19%

26 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

ISSUE VOLUME (continued)

The overall drop in average cases seen

in 2020 leveled off somewhat in 2021.
Widespread remote work, combined with
reduced focus on employee performance Average number Average number
per 1,000 per 1,000
and the challenges of managing performance employees employees
and behavioral issues remotely, may have ISSUE CATEGORY 2020 2021
contributed to the lower numbers in these
Performance Issues (such as performance counseling,
categories for the past two years. Aligned
coaching with manager or documentation, performance 33.4 32.7
with the historical findings since 2017, plan, performance rebuttal, etc.)
performance issues and policy violations
Policy Violations (such as potential or actual violations
continue to be the most common issue types. 22.6 30.2
or infractions of company policies such as code of
conduct, conflict of interest, inappropriate use of social
media, theft, fraud, substance abuse, etc.)

Behavioral Issues (such as issues or allegations related to

unprofessional conduct, inappropriate behavior, bullying, 18.0 16.2
Average number of discrimination,
insubordination, conflicts between co-workers, etc.)
harassment, and retaliation allegations
per 1,000 employees Discrimination, Harassment or Retaliation Allegations 6.8 6.4
EEOC or Other Federal State/Local Agency Charges 0.6 1.3
10.87 Total number of employee relations cases
131.60
organizations managed in the U.S. in 2021
7.34
6.91 6.81 6.40

2017 2018 2019 2020 2021

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 27

TRACKING EMPLOYEE RELATIONS DATA

What types of employee relations data does your organization currently track?

Employee relations teams continue to track

Issue Type 92%

a wide range of employee data to inform Issues by Department/Function 79%

business decisions. The most notable changes
in the 2021 findings were a substantial drop Issues by Location 76%
(-16 points) in the number of organizations
Trends Over Time 72%
tracking cases by manager or leadership level
and slight increases in employment history Issue Disposition 72%
and associated expenses—all areas that
Case Aging/Time to Close 66%
trended in the opposite direction in 2020. The
data also revealed slightly fewer organizations Remedial Action Taken 61%
focusing on remedial action taken.
Method of Notification 61%

Cases by Manager or Leadership Level 56% -16 from 2020

-16
Does your organization
track employee relations Employee History 53% +9 from 2020
+9
and investigation data? Time to Conduct Investigation/Time Spent by HR 46%

13%
Substantiation Rate 44%

Equity of Cases, Disposition or

24%
Remediation by Demographics
Anonymity Rate 24%

Performance Management Turnaround Stories 22%

87%
Associated Expenses 12% +8
+8 from 2020
Yes No
Predictive Analytics 7%

Associated Savings/Cost Avoidance 5

28 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

 Please share examples and best practices
of how you are using employee relations analytics.

Identifying Trends
Produce quarterly and full-year trend reports, Identify areas of opportunities and risks within Primarily to assess training needs; issues
identifying hotspots using a normalizing factor; certain business units; CEO conducts quarterly discussed broadly with HRBPs and leadership
share analytics and case studies to business business reviews with leaders to share ER findings to identify trends and possible remediation.
groups to address root causes/concerns; conduct and partner on ways to reduce cases through
periodic risk assessments for business groups to action planning. ER Process Review
understand employee sentiment, assess positive Analyze issue trends, resource management, Determine high-level insights into case volume,
ER practices, risks and recommend action plans. employee and manager education to inform issue types and actions taken—focus is on
Capture trends by region, over time and against HR decisions. ensuring users input information in a consistent
overall employee health. manner—an ongoing process!
Determine Training Needs Assess speed (e.g., time to close) and resources
Present monthly dashboard to Retail Executive to
identify trends by type and location and assist with Review statistics by location to identify any remedial (e.g., # of cases per specialist); analyze business
determining remedial actions to prevent future steps needed for training or manager support; look outcomes by tracking investigations outcomes,
similar issues; prepare quarterly trend reports on at time to close to ensure we’re acting on/closing performance improvement plan (PIP) outcomes,
conduct and ethical concerns to ascertain whether out investigations as timely as possible. and terminations by type—primarily for internal
systemic issues exist for Risk Oversight; track case Determine potential training opportunities and/ ER use to assess business operations; some
volumes and time to close to monitor staffing levels or the need to communicate (or re-communicate) metrics reported to senior HR leadership team
and operational effectiveness. policies, etc. and/or HRBPs.

Share trends with HR, Risk, and Line of Business Identify additional resources and training needed; Gather analytics for key insights/trends that
leaders monthly or quarterly highlighting top utilize metrics to demonstrate a need tell a story and to determine staffing needs
reasons associates contact employee relations and for company’s I&D focus. based on case volume and expected
detailing key case types; use retrospective data headcount growth.
to evaluate insights in specific “hot topic” areas
such as sexual harassment, discrimination and
leadership behaviors.
Produce quarterly scorecard for business Ensure global alignment of discipline and response, and inform
unit CHROs and share data and findings
staffing needs and assignments; ER Partners and HRBPs also leverage
Deliver quarterly leadership (including Board)
reports and cascade accordingly; develop analytics to proactively lower risk through different methods.
solutions to address trends/risk.

SIXTH
SIXTH ANNUAL
ANNUAL EMPLOYEE
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS
RELATIONS BENCHMARK
BENCHMARK STUDY
STUDY 29
29
Metrics and Analytics
METRICS REPORTING Organizations track data to identify training needs, drive business decisions and create better workplace
environments. As in prior Benchmark Studies, nearly two-thirds of organizations reported they use metrics for
data-driven insights and more than half use data to create and update policies. The one slight change in 2021 was
an uptick in the number of organizations that gather data but don’t use it. As with the past three Studies, employee
relations data is shared most often with HR and senior leadership and this occurred at the same rate as in 2020.

How are metrics and data gathered currently within your organization?
65% Identify Training Needs
64% Develop More Data-driven Employee Insights and Initiatives
56% Create Better Employee Relations Policies
48% Identify Potential Issues Related to Inclusion and Equity
36% Identify At-risk Populations
28% Identify Staffing Needs
11% Construct Predictive Models of Employee Behavior
19% Gathered, but Not Really Used
To whom in your organization do you report metrics
related to employee relations activities directly?

81%

67%

44%

29%
25%
20%
18%

Human Senior Legal Board Compliance Diversity Managers

Resources Leadership & Inclusion
(C-Suite)

30 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

INTEGRATION WITH ADVANCED ANALYTICS
What other data, if any, do you integrate with employee
Employee relations teams continue to work with
relations investigation data for further analysis?
other departments to integrate employee data with
investigation data for deeper insights. 45%
2021
In 2021, more organizations integrated employee 2020 40%
relations investigation data with turnover data and
2019 54%
engagement scores. This is not surprising, given the
large numbers of employees leaving organizations
during The Great Resignation. Companies are likely 2021 37%

analyzing this data to determine how to improve 2020 42%

employee experience, create pathways for career 2019 57%
growth and enhance workplace culture to retain
employees. Aside from this change, ER teams
2021 40%
continue to integrate employee investigation data
with other employee data for deeper analysis at 2020 28%
levels comparable to the 2020 findings. 2019 41%

2021 7%

2020 10%
2019 28%
Employee Demographics
Performance Ratings
Turnover 2021 8%
Business Performance 2020 9%
Compensation
Engagement Scores

2021 29%

2020 26%

2019 31%

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 31

PREDICTIVE ANALYTICS & AI

Organizations interested in Are you using or do you have plans to use employee
predictive analytics tracking relations data for predictive analytics or incorporate
it with some type of artificial intelligence (AI)?
26% 2%
No

Currently Use
Plan to Use
33%
74% Not Using/No Plans
Yes
65%

Larger organizations have more interest

in incorporating predictive analytics.

48%

Predictive analytics topped the tracking wish list (74%) for most ER
organizations in 2021, but only one-third of respondents said they plan to
incorporate predictive modeling and AI in the future. These trends parallel
the 2020 findings. It may be that ER professionals like the concept of
26%
predictive analytics but do not have the knowledge, skillsets, or resources
to implement them. The larger the organization, the greater the interest in
16% predictive analytics. This likely reflects a higher level of resources available
for new solutions.

Less than $1-$5 More than

$999 Million Billion $5 Billion

32 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

REASONS FOR NOT USING SHARING DATA ANALYTICS
METRICS & ANALYTICS
Among the small number of organizations that reported they do not Although nearly all organizations track employee relations data, few share
track employee relations data, most (70%) said that they have no way aggregated, anonymous investigation and ER information with employees.
to track the data. Others site several factors ranging from being too The interest in transparency inspired by the momentum of social movements
busy to poor data quality to little support from management. Perhaps seems to be in retreat. The 2021 findings were identical to 2020, after a
those who indicated they may incorporate employee relations spike seen on the heels of the #MeToo movement in 2019 followed by a
technology in 2022 will begin using metric and analytics. sharp decline. With the stakes higher than ever to attract and retain talent,
transparency is critical to ensure employees that their concerns will be taken
seriously and to foster a culture of trust and accountability. It will be interesting
What are the reasons you are not using to see whether this practice resumes its upward trend when employee relations
teams can refocus their priorities post-pandemic.
employee relations metrics and analytics?

No Tracking 70%
Mechanism Do you share aggregated, anonymous investigation or

No Time/ employee relations data with employees in any format?

35%
Too Busy

Poor Data 30% 2021 17% 83%

Quality

No Investment 2020 16% 82%

25%
from Management

Not Requested 2019 29% 71%

20%
from Leadership

Yes No

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 33

SHARING DATA ANALYTICS (continued)

Organizations that do share aggregated, anonymous investigation data with employees are doing so less frequently.

Only half (52%) of participants reported they share this data at least once each year, primarily as part of an Human Resources or Employee
Relations update. This is a disappointing 20-point drop from 2020. One-third of organizations said they share this information as part of a
company update. This may indicate a troubling trend that sharing employee relations data is less of a priority for organizations today.

How often do you share investigation In what format do you share investigation
data with employees? data with employees?

26%
35%
More Than Once a Year
Aggregated Information as Part of a Human
Once a year Resources or Employee Relations Update
26%
As Needed, Not According
Aggregated Information as Part of a broader
to Any Formal Schedule
company Update
35%
Only Upon Request
Aggregated Information Only Upon Request
26%
Don’t Know
Employee-specific Information Only Upon Request
9%
9%
13% 9%

34 SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY

About the Study
The annual HR Acuity Employee Relations Benchmark Study was launched in 2016 to identify and define best practices
for employee relations management.

Organizations across a wide array of industries provide data on employee relations practices related to their organization
model, case management processes, employee issue types, volumes, trends and internal data-driven metrics.

The Study continues to grow in breadth of topics and the number of participating organizations. We continue to work
with participants and members of the HR Acuity Employee Relations Roundtable and empowER communities to refine
and expand the instrument to include relevant topics on which practitioners seek benchmarking information.

The Study is the definitive resource for employee relations management and trends across the evolving landscape.
The Study provides organizations with best practices and metrics to compare their organization’s employee relations
function with other similarly situated organizations.

Interested in participating in next year’s Benchmark Study? Email us at [email protected] to let us know.

Want to learn more about how Did you find these benchmarks helpful?
HR Acuity’s case management and Interested in what other organizations
investigations solutions can help your are doing throughout the year?
organization deliver best-in-class
employee relations? Join the only online community for
employee relations professionals.
Take a 30-minute
Curiosity Tour
with one of our Connect with strategic ER practitioners
product specialists. for the insights you need.

SIXTH ANNUAL EMPLOYEE RELATIONS BENCHMARK STUDY 35

 HR Acuity is the only technology platform specifically built for
employee relations and investigations management, helping organizations protect
their reputations and build better workplaces.

We empower customers with built-in intelligence, templates and reporting

so they can equitably and appropriately manage employee relations issues;
uncover trends and patterns through forward-looking data and analytics;
and provide trusted, consistent experiences for their people.

hracuity.com
888.598.0161