News of worker shortages and persistently vacant positions has become old news.

I wonder how many persistently vacant positions are due to worker shortages, how many are due to an imbalance (geographical, skills-related, etc.) in the work force, and how many are due to pokey human resources personnel.  A story from my past illustrates the last point.  I will provide no names, other than my own, of course.

I had applied to work for an employer in another city.  Too much time passed without a response.  I learned that the human resources department had yet to run the criminal background check.  So, I walked to the local police station and asked the officer on duty to run such a check on me.  He did, almost instantaneously.  He also typed a letter on official stationery and declared my record clean.  I thanked him and sent a copy of that letter to the human resources department.

That employer eventually hired me.  I do not know if the human resources department finally ran a background check on me or if they took the police department’s word for it.  But I should never have had to do the job of the human resources department.

I mentioned this incident to a supervisor.  He sympathized with me and informed that he had repeatedly counseled the human resources department to work faster.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 23, 2022 COMMON ERA

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