Workforce

Anti-DEI activist Robby Starbuck gets spotlight at HR conference

Working Lunch: This week's political podcast discusses the appearance of a conservative influencer at the Society of Human Resource Management conference. Some attendees are boycotting the event, but is this an opportunity to hash it out??

In this week’s Working Lunch, Joe Kefauver and Franklin Coley of Align Public Strategies discuss the scheduled appearance of Robby Starbuck at the annual Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) in Louisville, Kentucky, this week. A conservative influencer, Starbuck has been a vocal critic of diversity, equity and inclusion programs across all industries, including restaurant companies. Starbuck has focused his “anti-woke” attacks on brands like McDonald’s and Cracker Barrel.

Some HR executives, however, are boycotting the SHRM meeting altogether. Kefauver and Coley question whether Starbuck’s attendance at the conference is an acquiescing to the MAGA universe or an opportunity for the HR community to get it all out in the open?

Also this week, the podcast takes a look at free universal child care in New Mexico and how that might impact the ability of new parents to stay or re-enter the workforce.

 

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