Here’s something even scarier than all of the horror films you’re binging around Halloween: The US presidential election is just a week away.

We’ve covered how Kamala Harris and Donald Trump’s stances on issues such as childcare, organized labor, and abortion might affect the HR function when a new administration enters the White House next year. Now, we’re looking at another facet of the candidates’ platforms that could significantly impact HR professionals: immigration.

Immigration influences the US economy, contributing to a growing labor force despite a declining population. Foreign-born workers made up 18.6% of the US civilian workforce in 2023, the highest share in more than 18 years, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That influx of immigrants has helped fill labor shortages that otherwise might have contributed to a recession. Future changes in the flow of immigration could drastically affect the US labor supply and, by extension, people professionals, experts told HR Brew.

Let’s dive into how each candidate plans to address immigration, and how that could impact HR professionals.

Keep reading here.—PM

More employees are seeking out unions as a way to address workplace issues, according to the National Labor Relations Board, the governing body that enforces labor law and conducts workplace union elections.

The NLRB reported this month that the agency received 3,286 union election petitions in fiscal year 2024, which ended on Sept. 30, an increase of 27% compared to last year and more than double the number of petitions received since FY 2021.

“The surge in cases we’ve received in the last few years is a testament to workers knowing and exercising their rights under the National Labor Relations Act and to our board agents’ accessibility and respectful engagement with them,” the NLRB’s General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo said in a statement.

HR pros can be mindful of the changing regulatory and societal landscapes, and double down on the “stuff you generally should be doing” to make sure people policies are open and reactive to the changing needs of your workforce, Rachel Lapp, who teaches labor relations at Towson University’s HR development graduate program, told HR Brew.

Keep reading here.—AD

The best laid plans of mice and men often…don’t have ROI in mind.

That’s how many companies are operating with respect to their generative AI investments, according to a new study from KPMG: Amid booming GenAI investments, the majority of companies don’t have a plan for measuring their success.

Among the respondents, 44% said their organizations were in the process of scaling up their generative AI usage, moving past the “research, experimentation and planning phases,” per the Big Four accounting firm.

The problem is that only 15% of respondents said their orgs have developed “measurable business outcomes and tangible growth” for those investments.

Keep reading on CFO Brew.—NP